Unveiling the Wallflower
by BluAugust
Summary: It is the start of senior year and Sasuke finds himself wishing it was already over, while Hinata merely wishes to survive. What neither one counted on was a bet that would bring them together and give them a senior year to remember. SasuHina
1. The Bet

_**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto._

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**Chapter One- **The Bet

"Look it's been fun but it's over."

Sasuke stared blankly at the pink-haired girl in front of him trying to process that fact that he was pretty sure that she was breaking up with him. Still the thought sounded a little foreign even inside his own head. He realized then that Sakura was staring at him, one perfectly manicured hand resting on her hip while she tapped her foot impatiently against the ground. Apparently she was expecting some sort of reply.

"You're breaking up with me."

It was a statement, not a question because Sasuke understood her words just fine. He wasn't about to have her repeat them again. The only real question he had was why. They had been going out since their freshman year and overall he had figured them to be pretty happy. They didn't fight and he put up with more crap from her than he figured most boyfriends would for their girl. So why now, at the start of their senior year, was she breaking up with him? It didn't make much sense for a girl who thrived on her position at the top of the social ladder. Still he didn't ask the question because if he knew Sakura, and he figured he did since he had dated her for nearly three years now, then she was going to share that with him whether he wanted to hear it or not.

"Look no hard feelings alright? It's just, well I need someone more mature."

To this Sasuke raised a dark eyebrow though again he said nothing. He had never been one for talking much. Instead he choose to let either Sakura, or his incredibly annoying best friend, fill the silence with whatever they wanted to ramble about, and he could honestly say that there was always something.

"I met a guy and well he's in college," she said emphasizing the word college as if it meant he was next in line to the thrown or something. "Anyway he asked me out and I decided that it was really just time for me to move on. Like I said no hard feelings, right?"

"Sure Sakura, whatever."

With that Sasuke walked away from the bubbly, head cheerleader and towards the school. She had caught him out in the parking lot and apparently had figured she would break the news to him then. Not that it mattered much to him. He was surprised, but at the same time he was overly upset by the news. His relationship with Sakura had been, taxing, to say the least, and part of him felt slightly relieved that he no longer had to worry about it. Still there was another part of him that was actually hurt. Not that he would ever admit that to anyone but the fact that Sakura was breaking up with him stung a bit and it wasn't just because of his pride.

Running a hand angrily through his black hair he rounded the corner into the building and plowed into someone. He would have sent the girl, as it turned out, to the ground if he hadn't caught her by the shoulders in time to steady her. With an annoyed sigh he bent down and picked up the books she had dropped all over the floor and shoved them not so gently back into her hands.

"Watch where you are going next time," he said, practically growling at the petite girl who was now practically cowering in front of him. For a moment he hesitated. The collision had been his own fault and there was no need to take out his sour mood on the poor girl. Still he was Sasuke Uchiha and he wasn't about to apologize. So without another word he pushed past the girl, leaving her standing there all wide-eyed and nearly shaking.

So he was being an ass, more importantly so what? His girlfriend of nearly three years had just broken up with him for some college guy. It was probably going to make him look like an idiot and therefore he was entitled to his sour mood. He would like to say that he could care less about what the rest of the student body thought of him but if he were being honest, he had to admit that he liked it here in the top. It was a hell of a lot more convenient because things simply came easier to him and he didn't need his breakup with Sakura ruining that for him, especially since he had practically handed Sakura her pedestal. Before he had dated her, Sakura had been the weird girl with the big forehead. Now she was cheerleading captain and one of those girls that could simply acknowledge a guy's existence and easily make his whole year. So the hell with her, Sasuke had no intention of letting it get to him. He had been through worse before, and he had survived that. This was merely a bump in the road, an incredibly annoying one, but hardly one to lose sleep over.

* * *

In theory his plan to not let Sakura's breakup get to him had been rather simple. The truth of the matter however, was that it was anything but that. By the time lunch had rolled around the news had spread like wildfire. He was pretty sure that the whole school knew about their breakup and he contributed that to two blondes. One of which was his own best friend, the other being Sakura's. Either way he wasn't overly happy when he walked out into the courtyard, his hands shoved into his pockets and a sullen look on his face. He took a seat at his usual table and for the moment was glad that it was empty. However that brief moment of being content was shattered by an obnoxiously loud voice.

"Sasuke! I heard you and Sakura broke up. Word is she's dating some sort of fitness guru," Naruto yelled as he made his way over to the table, a tray in hand. With him were Kiba, Sai, and Shino. Of the three only Kiba appeared to be interested in what Sasuke had to say back to Naruto. Both Sai and Shino looked as if they had already heard enough about the big breakup news.

Sasuke decided not to dignify Naruto's outburst with a response. After all it wasn't like the blonde had asked him any direct questions. Plus the last thing he felt like talking about was Sakura. It was only liable to worsen his mood. He wasn't entirely sure why he was so angry either, but he was. Maybe it was because he was going to have to spend the rest of the school year dealing with her smug attitude. Unfortunately for Sasuke though Naruto didn't take the hint and keep rambling on.

"What's wrong? Did she break your heart? I didn't think bastards like you had those," Naruto supplied, earning and snicker from Kiba.

"At least he has a dick," Sai interjected causing Naruto to whirl on him. If it wasn't for Sai's quick step to the left, Naruto's fist would have undoubtedly connected with his face.

"Shut the hell up," Naruto practically roared, causing a few heads to turn in the direction of the group. However upon seeing the source of all the noise, the glances once again turned away. Naruto and noise simply went together.

Kiba's cat call proceeded to break up the near physical confrontation and Sasuke turned his head in time to see Sakura and Ino walking by their table. They were both dressed in their cheerleading outfits for the back to school pep rally that was being held after school, the same one that he as a football player would be required to attend. It was the reason he, along with Naruto, Kiba, and Shino, were dressed in their jerseys. As senior members of the team they were required to go to the pep rally and unfortunately take part, though their main job was simply to smash a paper mache version of the rival team's mascot. It wasn't overly difficult, and if Sasuke's prediction was right, it would be Naruto who did most of the smashing. He would just get to be witness to the destruction. Naruto was the team's quarterback after all. He was also one of the captains.

Sasuke himself happened to be the other captain and the team's star receiver. For some odd reason he couldn't explain, he and Naruto always managed to connect out on the field. It didn't matter if there was not a single person standing in the space where Naruto threw the ball, Sasuke would end up there every time. Together the two of them had broken all sorts of school records and had helped carry their team to two consecutive state championship games. This year they were hoping to make it a third. With the help of solid defense from Shino at linebacker and Kiba at free safety their team just may be able to have a perfect season, something they actually hadn't done just yet. This was supposed to be the year that everything came together, not the year he got dumped by his sure-to-be-prom-queen girlfriend.

He watched them pass, his face impassive as always. Their outfits consisting of short skirts, tight fitting sleeveless tops, and the word Kohona printed across the front in black lettering. Somehow both Sakura had Ino had managed to alter their outfits just enough to push the envelop when it came to the dress code at the school. The only real difference between them was that Sakura's shoulder length hair was down while Ino's long blonde hair was pulled back into a high ponytail. He resisted the urge to glare and instead turned away while the rest of the guys around him let their gazes trail after the two beauties that had walked by.

"Damn now that she is back on the market I want to get myself a piece of that," Kiba said with a grin that could very well be described as wolfish. Sasuke's opinion was that the guy spent way too much time with his dog. Still if he said one more thing, Sasuke was going to be forced to punch his teeth in.

"She has a new boyfriend already you idiot. Besides I thought you and Ino had a thing," Naruto pointed out.

"The fact that she has a boyfriend doesn't mean a thing to me," Kiba said with that same wolfish grin. "And Ino and I have an unofficial sort of thing. It's called she doesn't tell me no."

"You're an asshole," Naruto said with a frown, and for once Sasuke had to completely agree with the blonde on something. Kiba was an asshole. Lately, the only reason that Sasuke put up with him was because he was good at football.

"Of course I am," Kiba agreed. "So what do you say Sasuke, you mind me trying my luck with Sakura?"

At this point it was clear that Kiba's sole reason for asking the question was to get on Sasuke's nerves. It was clear that while he would no doubt jump at a chance with Sakura, he enjoyed messing with Sasuke even more. While Sasuke and Naruto had a competitive relationship that resulted in a lot of insults being thrown back and forth, there was a brotherly undertone to it all, a kind of unshakable bond formed by two kids who had lost their families. With Kiba there had always been a one-sided rivalry and a rather malicious one at that. Sasuke usually ignored it, but today he made a mistake. Today he took Kiba's bait.

"Stay the hell away from Sakura," he growled, thoroughly annoyed at Kiba. "You and half the school population still wouldn't even have known that Sakura existed if I hadn't started dating her."

As soon as the words had left his mouth Sasuke knew that he had made a mistake. It was clear from the smug look that worked its way across Kiba's face. Sasuke wanted to groan out loud but there was no taking back the words that had just left his mouth. He blamed the slip in judgment on his desire to shut Kiba up, but the fact was that it did just the opposite. It gave Kiba a whole new arsenal of ammunition to choose from.

"Well excuse me. I didn't realize any girl that dates you suddenly becomes prom-queen material," Kiba said still looking smug.

Sasuke didn't answer. He wasn't going to dig himself deeper into the hole he had already created. Still the damage was already done, and he had a distinct feeling that he was not going to like the outcome of this all.

"Kiba just drop it already," Naruto said trying to relieve the tension that had settled between Kiba and Sasuke.

"No way, since someone seems so sure of himself, let's make a bet," Kiba said taking a step closer to Sasuke. Sasuke stared blankly back at Kiba, fighting the urge to knock the smug look off of his face. "If you can take a girl and make her prom queen Uchiha, then you win. If she loses though, I win. I'll even let Naruto pick the girl though I do have some say in it."

"What's the bet," Sai asked inserting himself into the conversation for the first time other than his earlier comment about Naruto.

"I don't know yet. We'll think of something though. So what do you say Sasuke. Are you in or are you afraid of losing?"

Sasuke frowned. He was not afraid of losing and certainly not to Kiba. Still the idea to use some girl as a pawn in a bet did seem a little wring, but then again wouldn't most girls do just about anything to be at the top of the social ladder. There was also the fact that just about every girl at the school would be willing to go out with him. He would just have to put up with them in the meantime. In the end though none of that really mattered. What it came down to was that he refused to let Kiba win in any way and backing out now would be doing just that.

"You're on Inuzuka."

"You are so going to regret this Uchiha," Kiba muttered before turning to Naruto. "Well Naruto pick him out someone."

"How about Ino," Naruto suggested with a grin.

"No way in hell will I let him off that easy. She could win if she wanted to with or without Sasuke. So nice try Naruto, but next option," Kiba said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"How about that girl with the flute," Naruto said pointing to a table where a girl with long red hair and dark eyes sat with two other guys. "The one sitting with Jirobo." Jirobo was a member of the football team as well. With his freakishly large size he made for a good offensive lineman.

"No way, too much potential. All she needs to do is lose the flute and the weird hat," Kiba said shaking his head.

"Well how about Haku?"

At the mere suggestion Sasuke felt his eye twitch. Naruto would be the only one to suggest turning a guy into the prom queen. Before he could say anything Shino spoke up, which in itself was slightly surprising. Shino was about as talkative as he was and so between the two of them they usually managed a few sentences combined at lunch.

"Naruto, for the last time Haku is guy," Shino explained.

"And I don't swing that way," Sasuke added just for good measure.

"I don't get it! How is a guy that pretty," Naruto exclaimed. He shook his head and then let his head fall down to the table they were seated at. "Man I didn't realize this would be so hard. You guys keep shooting down all my ideas."

"Because they suck," Kiba pointed out.

"Wait I got it," Naruto said sitting up from the table suddenly. "Hinata!"

"Who," Kiba asked as he turned to look at Naruto.

"She's the girl with the dark hair that's in our first block class."

"You mean the one that fainted when you said hello to her today?"

"Yeah that's Hinata," said Naruto with a grin.

"Deal," Kiba said with a grin. "Good luck turning that little mouse into a prom queen Uchiha."

"Alright, who's this Hinata," Sasuke said, his dark eyes scanning over the crowds of people.

"Right there," Kiba said with a grin.

Sasuke followed the direction of Kiba's gaze, anxious to see just who was at the receiving end of it, a sense of something akin to dread building up in the pit of his stomach. His oynx gaze landed then on a small girl with dark hair pulled back into what almost appeared to be a knot. Strands of her dark hair fell down in front of her face, hiding it from view as her face was turned down towards the ground. She was wearing clothes that Sasuke was pretty sure were better suited for someone's grandmother as they had absolutely no shape or style. Sitting with her were two boys, one of which was sound asleep with his head propped up on his hand, and the other a larger guy, stuffing his face with a bag of chips.

Sasuke looked closer at the girl, trying to figure out why she appeared familiar for some reason. It hit him then that she was the girl he had plowed over this morning. Again he had to resist the urge to grown out loud. He had just started this stupid bet and already he was off to a bad start. Before he could say anything though Naruto was standing on the table and waving like a madman at Hinata.

"Hey Hinata," he yelled.

Sasuke watched as the girl looked up and flushed a shade of red that he didn't think was possible. Hinata then proceeded to fall straight out of her seat, causing her friends to shoot up to check on her. This time Sasuke did groan and behind him he heard Kiba laughing.

"This is going to be one hell of a year, huh Sasuke?"

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**A/N:** So it is a short chapter but before I continued on further I wanted to get thoughts. First off if any of you have seen the movie "She's All That" you will notice that is where the plot idea came from. I am planning on changing it a bit but the concept is the same. I personally just felt like a bet would force Sasuke to actively pursue Hinata as I can't see him doing it for no reason while staying more in character.

Also I wrote the chapter from Sasuke's pov. What do you all think of that? Should I stick with Sasuke, switch to Hinata or try and work both of them in there. Granted I will probably switch the pov at certain times no matter what but I was just wondering if there was a preference on who's side the story should be told from.

I am guilty of using the Hinata/Shikamaru friendship again but that is because I really like it for some reason and Shikamaru also happens to be one of my favorite characters. This time I added Choji into the mix though instead of Naruto. Another question I had was what could you, as readers, see as Hinata's passion. I was thinking perhaps dancing but I was just wondering if anyone else had any input on that.

So please share all of your opinions, the most important one being whether or not I should continue with this story (and I know I promised fluff but bear with me there will be plenty coming up) Thank you all for reading!


	2. The Assignment

**_Disclaimer:_**_ I do not own Naruto_

_**Author's Note:** Okay so I was absolutely floored by all the reviews I received for this story. I had no idea that everyone would enjoy this type of plot so much. So thank you all SO much for all the wonderful reviews. They are the reason that this chapter is up already. Quick anon thanks for Shygirl~hina, kurai, nemulos, FanOfThisFic, Jay_chAn, and also thank you to any reviewers I didn't get a chance to reply to. I hope you all enjoy this chapter._

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**Chapter Two-** The Assignment

Lunch had come to an uneventful finish. Sasuke had discretely watched the two guys at Hinata's table pick the girl up off the ground and prop her back up into her seat while he wondered just what kind of trouble he had gotten himself into. His onyx gaze settled on Hinata only to find that her face was still flushed red though she was shaking her head in response to something that one of the guys had said. Sasuke also shook his head and looked away, focusing on the surface of the table that he sat at while Naruto rambled on to whoever was listening.

Obviously he had a lot of work to do. He certainly wasn't being given much to work with. From the way it looked this girl didn't know the first thing about hair, makeup, or clothes. Here he had thought that all girls had that programmed into them at birth. Plus from the looks of it she wasn't even capable of carrying on a conversation. If this girl was going to be prom queen, she couldn't faint every time someone said her name. Sasuke frowned and placed his head into his hands. None of that mattered though. He was not about to lose this bet. He was going to wipe that smug look off of Kiba's face one and for all, and he was going to enjoy doing it.

Determination renewed he stood up from the table and threw his backpack over his shoulder just as the bell rang to indicate the end of the lunch period. He glanced back over in Hinata's direction in time to see her clutch her books to her chest as if they would shield her from the students that pushed by her. Shaking his head he decided that he needed to get started as soon as possible. He needed all the time he was going to get. With a reluctant sigh he pushed his way through the crowd towards Hinata.

His newly found determination however did not last as it was quickly replaced by annoyance as he lost sight of Hinata. His eyes swept over the courtyard but he was unable to catch sight of the plain girl he had been tasked to turn into a prom queen. The look on his face turned to a scowl, which in turn caused those around him to give him extra space and extra space was often hard to come by in the shuffling crowds of high school students. It became apparent to him then just how invisible this girl was as he knew himself to have sharp eyes. He tended to notice everything, and here he couldn't even spot this girl. Annoyed, he shoved both of his hands into the pockets of his jeans and stalked off towards his next class, advanced placement biology.

* * *

When he walked into the room, the first thing he noticed was a head of glossy pink hair and subsequently the person it belonged to. He had to mentally check himself from narrowing his eyes at her and the slimy assistant teacher she was talking with. The guy's name was Kabuto and he was working for Orochimaru to pay his way through college. Personally Sasuke felt that there was something off with the guy, just like Orochimaru but apparently the school didn't have a problem hiring both of them. Kabuto had already planted himself at Sakura's lab bench and was currently talking with her, though it was rather obvious that his eyes were on anything but her face. Sasuke felt the distinct urge to walk over and yank him right off of the stool he was sitting on. Rather than get expelled though he decided to take the hit to his pride and walk over to where Shino and Sai were standing.

He was heading back to bench that the two were at when he came to a sudden stop. He jerked his head to the left and sitting there was no one other than Hinata herself. Again her eyes were cast downward and her hair was falling in front of her face like some sort of curtain. He felt a bit of anger stir within him towards this girl he had never once talked to. He was angry because she was there and he hadn't noticed her. He had been looking and he had nearly walked right past her. Frustrated, he nearly kept walking, but remembering the task he had in front of him, he changed his course and ended up standing next to the empty stool beside her.

"Hey," he offered casually. She turned then and for the first time he got a decent look at her face. Her skin was alabaster in color, creating a striking difference against her dark hair. Her eyes were large and pale with an almost strange lavender tint to them. Her lips were full, but her features were delicate, like a simple touch might break them. He was surprised, as looking closely at her face he supposed she could actually be considered pretty. Not that anyone would know the way she kept it hidden behind those dark locks of hair. He doubted many people stopped to take the time to notice the face that lay beneath them. After all he was slowly learning that this girl was practically invisible.

"H…Hello."

Her voice was quiet, almost inaudible above the background chatter of the class but he supposed that it was rather pleasing as far as voices went, feminine without being high-pitched and utterly annoying. He waited for her to continue but instead found that she had looked away again, back down at the lab bench as if there was something interesting on its surface.

"I actually wanted to apologize for earlier, I shouldn't have snapped like I did," he said carefully. It was difficult enough for him to apologize as it wasn't the sort who handed those out so easily, but he figured he ought to give her one, especially if he wanted to get on her good side though.

"It's o..kay," she stammered before turning away again.

For a moment Sasuke stood there in complete disbelief. He stared at Hinata with an incredulous look on his normally stoic features as he tried to grasp the fact that she had turned away from him again. He couldn't remember the last time a girl had turned away from him after he had said hello let alone offered an apology. Usually they started prattling on about some pointless topic by now. Yet this girl looked as if she would rather him leave her alone, and once again he found himself frustrated. Just who was this girl? Still annoyed, he struggled to find words as he was not used to be the one who was keeping a conversation going.

"Is anyone sitting here," he asked, gesturing to the empty seat he was standing by. He watched as she turned back towards him and noticed then that her hands were curled into small fists and pressed together in front of her, her index fingers tapping nervously together. Her gaze seemed to be on her fingers rather than him but she had heard him because she nodded her head in the affirmative.

"S..sorry but my f…friend Sh…shikamaru is sit..sitting there."

He briefly wondered if she had some sort of speech impediment. He noted that the stutter took away from the pleasing sound of her voice. Only then however did it occur to him that she had basically told him that he couldn't sit next to her. Again he was completely baffled by this girl. He opened his mouth to offer some sort of smug comment but none came to mind. It was one of the few times in his life that he was speechless for a reason other than his own. So snapped his mouth shut and stalked off, his pride once again wounded only this time it was by some insignificant wallflower. Had he really fallen so far? With a dark look marring his handsome face, he marched over and took the seat beside where Sai and Shino were standing, negative energy rolling off of him in waves. Of all the girls Naruto could have picked he had to pick one of the few girls that didn't turn into a complete pile of mush under his gaze. It was infuriating and at the same time, intriguing? No there was no way he was actually curious, but he couldn't help his gaze from trailing back to the small girl who was now sitting with who he assumed to be Shikamaru.

"I don't get her," Sasuke muttered to himself, shoving a hand through his hair in an annoyed fashion. Sai however overheard the comment and offered his two cents despite the fact that at the moment Sasuke really didn't want to hear it.

"How could you, you've barely said ten words to her. You're not going to figure Hinata out that easily."

"You know her," Sasuke asked, turning to face Sai then. He noticed the corner of Sai's mouth twitch upwards, casting a small grin on his face. Sai however simply shrugged his shoulders and turned back towards Shino picking up the conversation that the two had been involved in before Sasuke had stormed over. Sasuke frowned not only wondering how well Sai knew Hinata, but when the hell that had all happened because obviously he had missed it. He thought about asking Sai just how well he knew Hinata but at that moment the teacher, Mr. Orochimaru, walked into the room.

The distraction made Sasuke reconsider asking Sai, who was now moving to Sakura's lab bench leaving Sasuke to work with Shino. He wasn't going to ask for help, at least not today. There was no way he was going to willingly cast away another piece of his pride and actually ask someone for advice when it came to a girl. That was an area he had never had problems with before and he certainly wasn't going to admit to having them now. Sparing another quick glance at the strange girl a few lab benches away, he shook his head and then faced forward once again. He would figure out something. He was not going to lose this bet.

* * *

Once biology had ended, Sasuke headed off to his final class of the day, advanced placement English, with none other than his guardian Kakashi Hatake. Kakashi was his godfather, and after the deaths of his parents and his older brother, the job of raising him had fallen to Kakashi. Sasuke still had to wonder what his parents had been thinking with that decision, as Kakashi wasn't the fatherly sort, but in the end it had worked out in some strange way. He had wanted his space and Kakashi had given it to him even while Sasuke had been living with him. Now that he was older however, he was living on his own. Kakashi still looked out for him, but Sasuke was pretty much on his own. It was going to be weird having Kakashi as a teacher though. Mr. Hatake just didn't sound right considering he had lived with the guy up until this year since he had been about eight years old.

He wasn't in a hurry to get to classroom so he took his time as he moved through the halls. He knew that Kakashi would be late even if this was his job. Shaking his head, Sasuke made walked through the door to the classroom just as the bell rang. Like he suspected there was no sign of Kakashi and a small smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. Again his eyes swept over the faces of the students in the classroom and he easily picked out Sai and Ino. However, this time he let his gaze linger on the crowd, and he was only half-surprised to see Hinata sitting at a desk between the lazy guy and big fellow with the chips. The beginnings of a smirk once again formed on his features as he made his way over to Sai and Ino. He was pleased with himself that he had spotted Hinata this time rather than simply walking past her. This small triumph lifted his mood considerably and by the time he took his seat beside Ino, and right behind Hinata, he wasn't ready to bite off anyone's head.

As the class occupied themselves during the free time they were getting, Sasuke tried to form some sort of plan of action in his head on how to get Hinata talking to him. Unfortunately he wasn't coming up with much. With an annoyed sigh he spared a glance at Ino, who was flipping through a book she had pulled out of her bag and occasionally tapping a quick text message into her cell phone. Beside her, Sai was drawing something into his sketch book. Uninterested he looked forward again noticing that of Hinata's companions, one was asleep with his head on the desk and the other was unsurprisingly eating. Shifting his focus back to Hinata he noticed just how still she was sitting. Like she was made of marble rather than a living, breathing person, she remained relatively still. Despite the fact that her head was tilted downward, as if she was afraid, to look life straight in the eye, her posture was perfect like she was some formal dinner rather than a school classroom. He added that observation to the few others that he had come to notice about her.

Before he had time to think further on the matter, the door opened and Kakashi came sauntering in, a bored look on the visible portion of his face. Kakashi always wore high collared shirts that covered the lower half of his face. Sasuke had lived with the guy and had never actually seen his face though many of times he had speculated as to what Kakashi really looked like. He watched as Kakashi walked over to his desk and leaned against it, his dark gaze surveying the students in his class before he sighed and finally began.

"Welcome to advanced placement English. Some of you may know me from other classes but for those of you who don't, I am Kakashi Hatake."

"You're late," stated some student up front.

"Well you see I stopped to help a student who had gotten all turned around and of course I had to take them to their class. Then the janitor had mopped the floor and I didn't want to walk on them until they were dried. Slipping is a common cause of workplace injury after all."

Sasuke shook his head while beside him Ino groaned. Eventually the rest of the students in the class would learn not to bother asking. Kakashi would show up when he did and there was really no changing that. Eventually they would also learn that any excuse Kakashi gave was a complete load of crap. Sasuke let his mind drift while Kakashi went over a brief synopsis of what they would be covering this semester. He usually paid more attention but it was only the first day, very rarely did teachers cover important information on the first day. Plus in his defense it had been quite a long day already. So it wasn't until Kakashi cleared his throat that Sasuke actually snapped back to attention.

"Now with the remaining ten minutes of class I want you all to partner up with someone and learn about them. Tomorrow in the beginning of the class you will introduce your partner to the rest of the class. So get to it and don't partner up with someone you are sitting next to," Kakashi added before sitting down behind his desk and opening a book.

When Kakashi's words sunk in, Sasuke actually smirked. For a brief moment his luck seemed to be going the other way. Beside him he noticed Ino tense up and for a second he was distracted by the curvy blonde beside him. He had gotten to know Ino through Sakura, and he had actually grown to like her, about as much as he liked anyone at least. She was quite a bit different than Sakura though she tended to be considered the same as the two were often together. Still what most people didn't know was the type or relationship between the two. Sasuke wondered if all girls bickered like the two of them.

He noticed then that she was looking and someone and he followed her gaze to… the sleeping guy? Confused Sasuke looked back to Ino only to have her snap out of whatever she was feeling and flash him a brilliant smile. Sasuke didn't ask because he didn't pry into another person's business. Besides, he wasn't that good of a friend to Ino, that was Sakura's role. Ino tossed her blonde hair back over her shoulder and got up to find herself a partner.

Turning away from the distraction he smugly noticed that Hinata was still partner-less. He also noticed two girls on the other side of the room trying to catch his eye. Ignoring those two girls he stood up and moved around his desk only to take a seat in one right beside Hinata.

She jumped when his notebook hit the desk and turned to look at him. He noticed that she resembled a deer caught in headlights when she looked at him all wide-eyed like she was at the moment. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her. He didn't exactly see anything to be scared about.

"Wh..what are you d..doing," she stammered.

"You need a partner and so do I," Sasuke answered and instantly regretted the harsh edge to his voice because she shrank back from him. Scaring her certainly wasn't going to help him any.

"Why me," she squeaked.

"Why not you, unless you have some sort of problem with me," he questioned, his onyx eyes trying to read the pale face that she hid behind her hair.

"No. I don't h..have a pr…problem with y..you," she stuttered out. "It's just…"

"What," he demanded when she trailed off. He was curious just what she had to say and what her reasoning for not wanting to work with him might be. He really hadn't ever encountered someone who didn't want to work with him before, especially not a female. Her lavender hued eyes stared back at him before she finally shook her head, shaking the loose strands of hair around her face.

"Nevermind. We… we s…should start."

Sasuke nodded and flipped open his notebook at the top of his page. He wrote Hinata at the top of his page and then glanced over at her to see she had written Sasuke Uchiha at the top of her page already.

"Well you know my last name but I don't know yours," Sasuke stated causing her to look up from her notebook and back at him. He was briefly struck by the fluidity of her movements. Every time she moved it seemed to be with an essence of grace that he had never noticed with Sakura.

"Everyone knows y…your name," she said quietly. "It's Hyuuga, Hinata Hyuuga."

He nodded and quickly wrote down her last name. Again he noticed that she wasn't talking. Trying to have a conversation with her was like pulling teeth.

"Do you want to tell me more about yourself," Sasuke prodded. "What's your favorite color, or what do you like to do?"

"Oh… well my favorite color is p…purple. I h…have a younger sister named Hanabi. M…my favorite foods are cinnamon rolls and red bean soup. My hobbies are d…dancing and pressing flowers. What about you?"

Sasuke noticed that Hinata seemed to be stuttering less the longer she talked to him. That fact was promising. Maybe she really was that shy. He quickly finished jotting down what she had said and then set down his pen to answer Hinata's question.

"My favorite color is dark blue. I don't like sweets but I do like tomatoes and rice balls, and my hobby is football." He noticed that when he finished she frowned though she wrote down what he had said in neat print.

"Everyone knows you like football. What else do you like to do," she questioned asked.

The question caught him off guard and for a moment all he could do was stare at Hinata. What did he like to do besides football? Football and school were his life, and outside of that he didn't do much aside from whatever Naruto drug him to. Up until now football had always sufficed as an answer. No when else, aside from maybe Naruto had bothered to ask him what else he liked.

Apparently Hinata figured out that he wasn't sure what to say because a small smile graced the corners of her mouth, reaching her eyes and making them light up. It struck him then that he had been wrong before. She didn't have to be considered pretty, she really was, especially when she smiled.

"I like going for walks," he said finally and then instantly regretted his words. How lame did walking sound? Still there was no way talking the words back and Hinata had already jotted them down in her notebook.

"What about your family," she asked quietly.

"I don't have any."

He watched her face fall, the earlier light in her eyes gone as quickly as it had come. He almost felt bad for letting the blunt truth of his life slip out like he had but again there was no taking back the words. Besides he had thought that most of the student body knew that fact about his life. Apparently he had been wrong. Obviously Hinata's life did not revolve around the stories that circulated the schools.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly just as the bell rang. She quickly gathered her books and shoved them into her backpack. She was out of her seat and heading out of the room before he had a chance to say anything. He felt like a jerk again despite that this time he hadn't done anything terrible. Still the fact that he had upset her, even though the fault hadn't been totally his, left him unsettled. He shook his head in an effort to shake away the feeling and got to his feet. He picked up his notebook and walked back to his bag, shoving it in and then shouldering the bag. With a half-wave to Ino and Sai he headed out of the classroom feeling more confused about Hinata than he had felt only ten minutes ago.

* * *

**A/N:** So I hope you all like the direction the story is going. Sasuke is a bit stuck on himself still but don't worry, things will change. Also for those of you who have seen the movie _She's All That _do you think that Sasuke and Kiba should have a bet like that one or something else. I am up for suggestions. So please feel free to share anything you'd like to see in the story and I can see what I can do. Also this chapter was also in Sasuke's point of view but a lot of you seemed to like the story coming from him. However the next chapter will come from Hinata's point of view just to give you all an idea how she is feeling. Thanks again for reading.


	3. The Wallflower

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto

_**Author's Note**__: Again thank you too all who reviewed. I am really excited about the number of reviews this story is getting. Quick anon review thanks to shygirl~hina and Jay_chAn. Also thanks to those of you who I didn't get to reply to. You are all wonderful._

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**Chapter Three**- The Wallflower

Hinata quickly rushed out of her English class feeling as though she ought to sink straight into the floor after her last question to the school's resident God. Granted she couldn't be expected to know anything about his life, but she still felt incredibly guilty about bringing up what was probably a painful subject. His cold and almost harsh response was an indication of that. She didn't know whether to be intimidated by him or feel sorry for him after the reply he had given her. Still she had no intention of sorting that all out. She was going to do the smart thing and forget that Sasuke Uchiha had even acknowledged her existence.

Trying her best to avoid being trampled, Hinata pushed her way towards her locker. Yet despite her efforts one student managed to knock into her shoulder. The contact sent her stumbling backwards a step and for a brief moment she was completely disoriented. Of course the individual who had walked into her never bothered to apologize and she sighed to herself as she pushed forward again, finally reaching her destination.

She spun the combination on her locker and lifted the latch only to have the door remain closed. She sighed and tried the combination again only to have the same results. She put her weight into the locker, which wasn't much, and jerked at the latch with all her might. Still the locker refused to open and Hinata was reduced to glaring at it though she knew the chance of that having any effect whatsoever was nonexistent. Hinata was slightly startled however when a fist went over her head and banged on the top corner of her locker twice with quite a bit of force. The locker swung open and Hinata turned around to see Choji pulling back his hand.

"Oh. T…thanks Choji," she stammered as she smiled fondly at her larger friend. She could double herself as well as grow a foot before she would catch up to Choji's size.

"No problem," Choji said with a grin as he leaned against the locker next to hers. "Hey Shikamaru."

Hinata's gaze went from Choji out into the mess of people that seemed to fill the hall. She caught sight of Shikamaru walking towards them with a predictably bored expression on his features. Cutting through the steam of students on their way to the gym, he walked over to the lockers and leaned against them as well. He leaned his head back against one and closed his eyes, allowing his body to slouch as the lockers kept him propped up.

Hinata turned back to her locker and opened her bag to figure out which books she needed to take home with her. Fortunately it was the first day and she didn't have much in the way of homework. After shoving most of her books back into her locker, she straightened and shut her locker only to find Shikamaru watching her intently.

"What was up with you in class? You practically ran out."

"N…nothing," she stammered, and while it was clear that her friend didn't believe her, he let the subject drop.

Placing her bag over her shoulders she stepped back into the main stream of students shuffling through the hallways. This time she had Shikamaru and Choji on either side, and as a result she wasn't in danger of being trampled. Sticking close to her friends she followed them towards the gym.

"Man these things are such a drag," Shikamaru complained as they passed through the doors of the gym and moved towards an empty spot on the bleachers.

"Come on they're not that bad," Choji protested. "Sure they're a little lame but it doesn't hurt to show some school pride. Plus we got out of class early."

Hinata nodded in agreement with Choji before settling down in between her two friends. She supposed though that her opinion of the school's pep rallies was slightly biased. After all she didn't enjoy them because she got to show school spirit but instead because she got to see her long-standing crush, Naruto. She knew that without fail the blonde who she had often dreamt about would be at the pep rally and that alone was enough to get her to go. Of course classes had been cut short today and the pep rally was mandatory, but if it hadn't been she would have gone anyway.

She had been pining away for Naruto ever since the sixth grade when he had stood up to her cousin Neji for her. Back then she and Neji hadn't gotten along. He had resented her when he had first come to live with her family because she still had a family while he didn't. Of course it didn't help either that her father had always looked down upon his twin brother, her uncle and Neji's father, and did the same with his son. For that reason her relationship with Neji had been strained from the very beginning. He viewed her as pathetic yet spoiled and she was too afraid of him to try and change his opinion.

As clearly as it was yesterday, she could remember how it all changed. They had been at school and Hinata, still unused to the her new middle school had gotten lost. Of course Neji was the one who had found her near tears and late for class. Rather than help her he had proceeded to yell at her until she was crying. Then her knight in shining armor arrived. She heard him long before she saw him as her face had been buried into her hands. She remembered hearing him yell at Neji for making her cry and she remembered that fact that Neji's threats had no impact on him. He refused to back down and before she knew it, Neji stomped off ranting about how it wasn't worth his time.

She could still picture clearly the first time she saw those bright blue eyes peering into her own as he asked her if she was okay. At the time she had been too breathless to speak. Instead all she had been able to do was nod her head and swipe the tears away from her eyes. Then he gave her a smile, the kind that instantly seemed to make the world a better place, and told her his name, Naruto. Naruto had then walked her to her class, although he apparently had an even worse sense of direction than herself. She had been quite late to class that day, but she hadn't cared.

From that day forward she had wanted him to notice her. That day she had wanted to shine just to make him look her way. Everything about him screamed perfection and she simply wanted to bask in the glow of it. She wanted to be with him. Yet her hopes were never meant to be as the years passed and she was left to simply admire him from afar. He never realized just how much she wanted him and she was far to shy to tell him for herself, and so nothing happened. She was left with her dreams and nothing more.

Still that day Naruto had come into her life had changed more than just her dreams. It had drastically altered her relationship with Neji as well. That same day he had apologized to her after school not just for yelling at her, but for everything. She had been all too willing to forgive him and now she shared a close relationship for her cousin. This year was going to be hard without him as he was now off at college and she no longer had him watching over her with a big brother-like mentality though she was pretty sure that he had threatened Shikamaru and Choji into keeping an eye on her.

Thinking about her often stoic looking cousin caused a small smile to grace her features as she waited for the pep rally to begin. She already missed him, if he had been here she would have been cheering him along as well as Naruto, as Neji too had also been one of the school's top athletes. But she knew that he was probably much happier out at school and away from her father. Despite the improvement in their own relationship, Neji and her father continued to butt heads until the day Neji had left.

The sound of the band drew her out of her thoughts and she watched as the cheerleaders ran into the gym. Up front was Sakura, followed closely by Ino and the rest of the squad. Pompoms waving, they ran around the gym floor kicking up their legs and cart-wheeling. Hinata found her gaze trailing to Sakura, the girl who had shot Naruto down all throughout middle school. If only she was as pretty as Sakura, maybe then Naruto would have seen her like that too. She certainly would have never turned him down. But she was no where near as pretty as Sakura, she was plain not to mention short. She would never have that long, slender figure.

She frowned despite herself, knowing that physically comparing herself to Sakura was just going to leave her feeling less confident than usual, which was no easy task. Deciding to send her thoughts in another direction, she was glad for the distraction that Choji provided her with when he bumped her arm. She turned to face him, her lavender eyes resting briefly on his bag of chips before drifting to his face. Choji nodded in Shikamaru's direction and Hinata gave him a questioning look before turning to look at her other friend.

She realized then that for someone who had claimed these things were a drag, Shikamaru was certainly paying quite a bit of attention. In fact in any other situation he would probably be sitting there with his eyes closed. Instead he was intently watching something, or perhaps the better word was someone. She followed his gaze to Ino, but when she looked back at her friend, their was a frown marring his usual bored expression.

Hinata looked back to Choji who like herself had a sad smile on his lips. Hinata knew that before high school, Choji, Shikamaru, and Ino had all been best friends. Ino lived right next to Shikamaru and the three had been nearly inseparable. Then high school happened. Ino became part of the in-crowd and Shikamaru and Choji didn't. Losing friends was as easy as that. Hinata knew that from experience as well. Before high school she had been friends with both Sakura and Ino. Now they didn't even acknowledge that she existed. Still she wondered if Shikamaru was still annoyed over having Ino blow him and Choji off or if there was something more there. After all it wasn't very often that Shikamaru let any emotion display itself so clearly on his face.

Again her thoughts were pushed aside when the football team piled into the gym. Her heart skipped a beat because there in the front of the pack was Naruto. He was in between his couch Mr. Umino and Sasuke. On his face was the smile that she loved so much as he waved happily at the crowd of students sitting in the bleachers. She found herself clapping and beside her Shikamaru, now back to his usual demeanor, shook his head knowing full well the reason for her clapping. Beside her Choji chuckled as well and although she blushed slightly, she didn't stop clapping.

She watched as Naruto, Sasuke, Kiba, Shino, and Mr. Umino stepped forward to accept a large paper mache raccoon from a smiling Sakura and Ino. Of all the things to notice in that moment she happened to notice Sasuke tense up. Of course given his breakup with Sakura, which even she knew about despite the fact she lived in her own little world, it was understandable. Still she supposed she could have just imagined it because it seemed that almost immediately that his stoic front was back in place. Her interest in Sasuke ended there as she turned her attention back to Naruto wondering how it was possible that someone was so perfect in nearly every way. He was confident, loyal, compassionate, determined, and he was good-looking. She wished she was more like him.

Today he had said hello to her twice. She couldn't remember the last time that he had taken the time to do that. Of course she had gone and blown it by passing out the first time and falling out of her chair the second. She wasn't sure why but her brain always seemed to stop working even when he looked her way. As a result she always made a complete fool out of herself. As her gaze rested on Naruto, who was now tossing the paper mache raccoon around with the rest of the group, she found herself comparing him to his stoic friend beside him. For as long as she could remember girls had lined up to be with Sasuke Uchiha. His dark and brooding looks in combination with his aloof and sometimes cold attitude had them all at his feet.

Personally she didn't get it. Watching the two right now she preferred Naruto's smiling face to Sasuke's emotionless gaze. She supposed they were both quite handsome but she preferred Naruto's bright blue eyes to the black of Sasuke's. Over all she found Sasuke to be intimidating where Naruto was welcoming and when it came to their personalities she would compare Naruto to the sun where Sasuke would be a block of ice. No she was not a fan of Sasuke's, never once had she climbed onto that bandwagon nor did she intend to. She wanted his goofy but charming best friend.

The moment that followed was one of destruction as the paper mache raccoon was subjected to the blows of four of the school's top football players. The student body responded with a roar of cheers and after a few more words from principle Tsunade, everyone stood and shuffled for the doors. Hinata remained with Shikamaru and Choji as she too shuffled for the doors. For the most part the two of them prevented her from being jostled around in the crowd as it poured through the doors.

As soon as she stepped outside she felt marginally better as she was no longer trapped within the crowd of students. There were still individuals pushing past one another on their way to their cars or the buses, but there was substantially more room.

"Hey Hinata do you need a ride," Choji asked.

"I have d…dance. I was just going to t…take the bus," she admitted as she fixed one of the straps on her backpack.

"You don't have to take the bus. I'll give you a ride. Your dance studio isn't really out of the way," Choji said with a grin. "I am taking Shikamaru home too."

"Alright… thank you Choji," she said with a small smile.

"I don't get why you don't have your own car," Shikamaru said, finally joining the conversation. "I mean Hanabi has her own car and she only just turned sixteen. You're a whole year older."

"Hanabi gets better grades than I do," Hinata said as she fiddled with her hands. At least she wasn't stuttering though. She always stuttered less around people she was comfortable with.

"Hinata you've gotten straight A's nearly every semester," Shikamaru stated, which caused Hinata to shake her head.

"No I've gotten three B's," she argued.

"In what," Shikamaru countered.

"AP European History, AP Statistics, and," she sighed, "Home Economics."

"You got a B is home ec," Choji asked while Shikamaru tried to keep his usual straight face.

"Yes," she said hanging her head. "I can't sew and my cooking isn't the greatest either."

This time both Choji and Shikamaru started laughing. Hinata made her best attempt at glaring at the two of them though it was rather pitiful and only caused them to laugh more.

"It's not funny," she said as the two of them regained their composure.

"Yes it is," Shikamaru argued, his face resuming its usual bored expression. "Lets face it, the last class anyone would think you would struggle with is home ec."

"That's stereotyping," Hinata pointed out.

"Yeah but it's still funny."

Choji nodded his head in agreement with Shikamaru and Hinata just sighed. She supposed it was funny that one of the classes she struggled the most with was one that should have been easy. She wondered if her relationship with her father might be a little better if she was better at more domesticated tasks like cooking and sewing. Still she doubted it. Ever since the loss of her mother Hanabi had shined in their father's eyes, and well she had been nothing but a disappointment.

"Still," Shikamaru said as they walked past the buses and towards the parking lot where Choji had parked, "I know you get better grades than your sister, even with three B's."

"Well Hanabi has her tennis," Hinata said trailing off. "She doesn't have as much time as I do for schoolwork."

"Now you're just making excuses. It's bad enough that your father pays for Hanabi to go to that private school while you and Neji were stuck here."

"Come on Shikamaru forget about it," Choji said noticing how uncomfortable Hinata was starting to look.

"Sorry," Shikamaru muttered when he looked over at Hinata whose gaze was now downcast while she played with her hands.

"It's okay," Hinata said rather quietly, her gaze still locked on the ground.

Shikamaru was right though, and the fact that he was right stung quite a bit. She was making excuses when the simple fact of the matter was that her father simply favored Hanabi more than herself. She wasn't sure why but it had been that way ever since she could remember, ever since her mother had died. At the time she had been eight years old and Hanabi had been seven. They had all taken the loss hard and the life that Hinata had been used to had died right along with her mother. For the longest time her father had alienated both herself and her sister, but right around the time that she had turned 12, her father took an interest in Hanabi's life. Ever since then her father had spoiled Hanabi rotten while completely ignoring herself. Still Hinata worried about Hanabi as their father had become quite demanding of her younger sister.

The low whistle of Choji caused her look up from the ground. It was a good thing that she did too because otherwise she would have walked straight into his back and probably fallen on her backside.

"Some guys have all the luck," Choji muttered, shaking his head. "I'll be lucky if I can afford a car like that before I die."

"Anyone would be lucky to own Ferrari Fiorano before they die," Shikamaru commented

Hinata snaked her head around Choji in time to see a sleek black car that looked expensive pull out of a parking spot. Her father had cars that looked like that, not quite the same, but expensive nonetheless. She watched the windows roll down and had to suppress a squeak when she saw Naruto in the passenger's seat. Beside him, in the driver's seat was Sasuke Uchiha. The car drove past slowly and to her complete embarrassment Naruto noticed her looking at him, or maybe he thought she was just looking at the car like Choji and Shikamaru. She could only hope.

"Hey Hinata," Naruto practically yelled out the window.

To her utter horror, she fell backwards then, right onto her backside. Several nearby students started to laugh and her cheeks flushed a brilliant shade of red. When she dared to look up, she noticed that Naruto was still watching her and he looked slightly concerned. She noticed that Sasuke had stopped the car and was looking at her too, though the look on his face could hardly be considered concern. If anything she would have classified his look as annoyance, which was probably not a good thing given that his face was usually quite unreadable.

She looked back down at the ground and heard the engine rev slightly as the car jetted out of the parking lot. Choji and Shikamaru drug her up to her feet and together the three of them made it to Choji's car without another incident. Hinata could still feel the heat from her face as she slid into the passenger seat since Shikamaru had offered to sit in the back. Finally safe inside of Choji's car she put her bag on her lap and sunk down into the seat, glad that the first say of school was finally over.

* * *

As Choji pulled out of his parking spot he spared a quick glance at his two friends. Hinata looked like she was trying to melt into the seat of his car and Shikamaru was already stretched out across the backseat looking like he was asleep. He had one friend in love with a girl he never wanted to forgive and the other in love with a boy who she couldn't even talk to without fainting. Granted they had made it through high school in one piece so far but it sure seemed like this year was going to cause some problems.

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A/N: So I wrote this chapter from Hinata's pov with a little bit of Choji there at the end. I had originally planned on having one chapter like this before switching back to Sasuke's pov. I actually think I am going to write one more chapter from Hinata's pov before switching back. It will probably be back and forth for the rest of the story. I was thinking about sticking mainly to one or the other but it is probably going to be told better if you get both of their sides. Anyway now that I am done rambling I hope you all enjoyed. Please feel free to leave any questions, comments, or suggestions.


	4. The Sweatshirt

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto.

**Author's Note:** New chapter is up. Again thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews. Thanks to my anon reviewers, whitemoon88, nemulos, and Jay_chAn. Also thanks to those of you who I may not have replied to. You are all wonderful. And for now on with the story.

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**Chapter Four**- The Sweatshirt

Hinata waved at the car as Choji pulled out of the parking lot, Shikamaru still asleep in the back. She turned then and for a moment stared up at the sign that hung on the building in front of her, Yuhi Dance Studio. The place had become much like a second home to Hinata, though there had been a time when she had almost stopped dancing altogether. She shuttered as she remembered the day she had 'quit'. She couldn't imagine what her life would be like now if she didn't have this one outlet, this one thing that she did solely for herself, not for her father, not for Hanabi, not for Neji, and not for her friends.

It had been right after her mother had died that she had nearly given up on dancing. Unknowingly she had nearly given up on her passion though at the time she had been quite young still and only just beginning to dance. Her mother had been so supportive that first year she had decided to take up ballet. Her mother had toted around her seven-year to her dance lessons and recitals. She had fussed over her leotards and her costumes, and she had helped her daughter memorize the steps to her dances. She had even gotten her husband to attend their daughter's recitals. Needless to say losing her mother had painted dancing in another light for Hinata. If it hadn't been for Ms. Kurenai, Hinata surely would have given up on it altogether.

She was eternally grateful to Ms. Kurenai for convincing her to stay, and since then Hinata had come to look up to her as a motherly figure in her life, just as Hanabi did with herself, though she was only about a year older. Readjusting her backpack, she stepped forward and walked into the familiar building noticing that a few other girls were already here. They glanced up when she walked in, but immediately went back to what they were doing when they realized she was no one of consequence. Putting on her brave face, Hinata continued to walk forward, back to the small changing area near the back of the dance studio.

She passed the girls who still didn't acknowledge her and slipped into the dressing room. She supposed even her passion was not without its thorns. While she loved to dance, even here she was an outcast. It seemed hard to believe that even the common love of dance she shared with the other girls didn't bring them together. She was still the loser, the one that none of them were willing to befriend. The grasp of high school extended far beyond its walls. She was still a nobody here and that wasn't about to change anytime soon. She had one friend, aside from Ms. Kurenai, but they weren't even in the same class. They didn't associate outside of the dance studio either. They hung out in different crowds and neither was talkative sort. Aside from that the only people who bothered to talk to her were the younger dance students who had either not grasped or simply not cared about the concept of the cool and 'uncool' people.

Closing the door behind her, she slipped out of her baggy school clothes and into her leotard, which had been tucked away carefully in her backpack, along with her ballet slippers. This by far was her least favorite part about dancing. She hated wearing a leotard. It was the very bane of her existence. For starters she was incredibly self-conscious. While she knew that she didn't have an atrocious figure, she was uncomfortable with the size of her chest and the way her body curved, and being in a leotard, there was simply no hiding anything. She liked to hide them both beneath her shapeless clothing. After all she hated attention, she did not like having all eyes on her, being under the scrutiny of a judgmental gaze. She lived under her father's enough as it was. And it was why she couldn't keep anything down before she went to a recital or had to give some sort of speech at school.

Pulling her hair out of the knotted ponytail it was in, she glanced in the mirror as it fell down to the center of her back, perfectly straight as it always was. She ran her hand through it several times, pulling out the tangles before she twisted it up into a neat bun. Reaching back into her bag, she pulled out several bobby pins. She pinned her bangs back away from her face and stared at her makeup-less face in the mirror. She wanted to hide behind her bangs again, behind her hair and yet she couldn't, at least not during her dance lesson. Closing her lavender eyes for a brief minute she took a calming breath to steady herself before she stepped back out of the changing room.

Again no one paid her any mind and she stood awkwardly in the corner of the floor, her arms encasing her body as if to shield it from any prying eyes. For the time being she avoided the full length mirror along the wall, knowing that she would be required to observe her movements, and consequently herself, as soon as the lesson began. She chewed on her lower lip, anxiously awaiting that moment. At least when she was dancing she tended to forget everything else. When she was truly focused nothing else mattered, she no longer cared what anyone saw. She looked up from the floor when she heard a familiar voice call her name. Her lavender eyes fell on Kurenai who was waving her over. She offered her dance instructor a shaky smile before crossing the room to where Kurenai was standing.

"Hello Hinata. How was your first day back to school?"

"It… it was alright," Hinata said twisting her face into a fake smile that her dance instructor saw through. Kurenai sighed and motioned for Hinata to follow her into a separate room that she called her 'office,' though the term was used loosely.

"Take a seat," Kurenai stated as she took sat. Hinata took the seat across from her and promptly began to fiddle with her hands. She liked Kurenai and was comfortable with her but for some reason she sensed a tension in the air that was making her incredibly nervous.

"I just wanted to talk to you about this year. It is your senior year after all," Kurenai said to which Hinata nodded her head in agreement.

"Do you know what you want to do after you graduate," Kurenai asked, her face serious as she awaited Hinata's reply.

"Well I… I… umm… I wanted to go to the d…dance academy," Hinata stammered out. "Only if you think I'm… umm… good enough… to… get in." She paused for a moment, her body noticeably stiffening slightly as she muttered under her breath. "And if my father lets me." She was rather certain Kurenai didn't hear the last part, she seemed to be thinking about what she had said before mentioning her father.

"Listen Hinata you are a wonderful dancer. You have a fluidity and grace that most of us can only dream of. Your moves are flawless, always perfectly executed." Kurenai paused then and Hinata tensed up. Here was the bad part, the part where her hidden hopes and dreams were crushed by a person who she looked up to.

"But…" There is was the word that was the beginning of the end, and it was all Hinata could do not to give in to the urge to flee.

"You don't make your moves, or your routines for that matter, your own. There is no personal touch, nothing that defines you. Dancing is also about expressing yourself, but when you dance Hinata, you show nothing. For years I have been trying to get you to come out of your shell, but I haven't been able to and I am afraid that is the one thing that could hurt your chances. While talent is important to get into a dance academy, so is the ability to transmit a message or a feeling to your audience and I am worried you can't do that."

"Ohh…"

It was the only thing she could say, the only thing she could force out of her mouth at the moment. What else was there to say? The words stung though she knew that Kurenai was only trying to help her. Yet the simple fact was that again she was not good enough at something. Again she was lacking in some way, and again she was left feeling as if she wasn't good enough. Her lower lip trembled but she maintained the shaky composure that she had.

"That's why I am going to have you try something different," Kurenai said gently, erasing the silence that had settled between them. Hinata looked up at her, her lower lip no longer trembling as perhaps a small beacon of hope was being cast her way.

"For the time being I want you to stop your ballet lessons."

Hinata's face fell at Kurenai's words. Her lavender eyes widened in shock as she tried to grasp the concept of giving up her dancing.

"S…stop ballet," she stammered.

"Just for a while. I don't want you to stop dancing completely. I just want you to try something different than ballet. I want you to step out of your comfort zone. Maybe that will help break out of your shell. After all, I can't teach you anything more about ballet, and I do believe that branching out will make you a better dancer. Who knows maybe this type of dancing will even suit you."

Hinata nodded her head though her mind was still reeling as she tried to digest the fact that she would be saying goodbye to ballet, at least for the time being. It was a comfort that she would still be dancing, but at the same time learning a whole new style of dance in what could be her last year at Kurenai's studio seemed rather foolish. Yet she trusted Kurenai and so she would accept her decision even if it did seem crazy.

"Come to the classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday instead. And if you need to get in any extra practice I can let you use the studio on Sundays as well. I promise you Hinata that I am going to do anything I can to help you get into a dance academy. You will have your pick after our final recital in the spring. Trust me, I know you can do this," Kurenai said as she stood up out of her chair and pulled Hinata into a hug.

Hinata returned the hug and did her best not to get too emotional and start crying. For a moment silence settled over the room though this time it was a comfortable one. Hinata was no longer quite so anxious though she was still a bit unsure about how this would all work out. Still the only thing she could do was try.

"You can stay for this lesson if you would like," Kurenai said as she pulled away.

"No," Hinata said, shaking her head. "I'll go. I will just… come back tomorrow."

"Alright," Kurenai said with a warm smile. "I will see you tomorrow then. And I hope you have a better day," she added before Hinata slipped out of the office.

When she stepped out she noticed that two girls were standing rather close to the office though they looked away when they saw her. Hinata looked down at the ground and hurried back to the changing room. Swapping her leotard for her baggy clothes and her neat bun, for her disheveled ponytail, she stepped back out of the changing room and headed for the door. However she didn't make it to the door when she heard another familiar voice, though this time it didn't belong to a friend at all.

"You know you could always try and stop eating you know. You'd probably be better if you didn't have so much weighing you down."

Hinata froze, her lower lips quivering as Karin, a slender redhead who was just below the ranks of Ino and Sakura in the realm of high school, directed a shot at her. Again as much as Hinata would have preferred it not to, the verbal jab stung as she was always self-conscious about her body when it came to dancing. Ballerinas were tall and slender, Hinata herself was short and curvy. She defied the norm.

"Granted," Karin continued, "Even if you did manage to drop enough weight there isn't much you could do about your height. You might as well save Ms. Kurenai the trouble and just quit now. A cow like you is never going to make it into an academy."

Apparently they had been listening in on her conversation with Kurenai. Hinata's lavender eyes watered up but she refused to let tears spill as she quickly rushed out of the dance studio, ignoring the smug look on Karin's features as she fled. Only once she was outside and safe against the side of the building did she allow herself to cry, and even then she limited it to a few tears before she pushed herself off the wall of the building and decided to go home. Right now all she wanted to do was go home and let this day finish itself out while she was locked in the safety of her room.

With her head tilted downward ever so slightly she set out for her house on foot since she didn't have a ride. Lately Hanabi picked her up on the way home from her tennis lessons though before that she had always gotten a ride from Neji or Tenten. Everyday Neji would pick her up, and if he couldn't he would have Tenten do it though there had been a few times she had walked simply because the weather had been nice. The walk itself only took a little more than a half an hour and she really didn't mind it as most of the roads had sidewalks or were residential. The only problem was that today she didn't count on the weather.

Hinata didn't notice the gray skies when she left the dance studio. In fact she didn't notice them until she felt the first drop of rain land on her head. She lifted her head then, pulling her gaze off of the light gray sidewalk beneath her feat and letting it come to rest on the dark gray clouds that hung overhead. The ominous clouds had replaced the clear sky that had been present earlier in the day, and now the raindrops began to fall more steadily.

The raindrops were heavy, not the small misting kind, but the larger ones that were audible as they fell against a window. It was cool too as the arrival of the rain seemed to put a chill in the air that hadn't been there before, and to make matters worse she heard the low rumble of thunder in the distance. She paused for a brief moment as more raindrops fall and landed on her. She was about twenty minutes from home and ten from the dance studio. She could turn around and go back or hope she made it home before the storm really set in. Either way, with the rain falling progressively harder with each passing minute, she was going to be soaked.

Still she couldn't imagine going back to the dance studio, especially like this. Not after what had happened. She would rather face the storm than the looks from the girls in her class again. She shivered slightly as the rain began to soak through her shirt, and she hoped her books in her backpack wouldn't be ruined. She wished she could call Neji or Tenten to come and get her, but they were two hours away. That thought made her realize that she missed them both terribly. She could call Choji or Shikamaru but they were on the other side of town and by the time they got her she would probably be home anyway, and Hanabi wouldn't be done her lesson for another hour. Her lessons were rain or shine given the indoor facilities that her trainer had access to. There was no one else to call and that fact was slightly depressing. Hanging her head once again Hinata continued to walk, trying to ignore the rain as it pelted her.

* * *

Sasuke flicked his windshield wipers up to the highest setting as the rain pounded against his car. He had spent the past twenty minutes inside Naruto's house trying to explain the newest football play to him. It was the biggest waste of time but Sasuke had figured that he ought to at least try to explain the play. Still the words 'wide receiver reverse' just weren't sinking in for Naruto. No matter how many times Sasuke had explained that there was no throw in the play, just a pitch, Naruto just wasn't grasping it.

Despite that Sasuke wasn't overly worried or annoyed for that matter. Freshman year when they had all started on the team he would have been annoyed. Freshman year he would have figured that with an idiot like Naruto at quarterback the team would never win a game. Yet since then he had been proven wrong, though he would never admit to that. The fact of the matter was that no matter how confused Naruto would be in a practice, no matter how many times he botched a play during a scrimmage, when it came game time he always worked it out. As soon as a game started, Naruto was running plays like he had done them perfectly hundreds of times before. Sasuke had come to understand and accept this, though it never ceased to amaze him.

So after the tenth time of unsuccessfully trying to explain the play to Naruto, he had shook his head and given up. He told Naruto he'd figure it out when it mattered, and Naruto had grinned like a fool and told him he was right. Sasuke had left after that and headed home for his apartment. Of course the minute he had pulled out of the driveway the rain had started and he grumbled meaningless threats to the weather as he headed down the road.

He turned off of Naruto's street and after a moment noticed someone walking on the sidewalk. He shook his head, glad that he wasn't the unfortunate person who had gotten stuck walking around in this rain, especially without an umbrella. He drove past the person and out of morbid curiosity glanced in his rearview mirror. A scowl quickly replaced his impassive look as he recognized the drenched figure. He narrowed his eyes at her though she couldn't see him. Was she completely helpless? He hit his brakes unaware that he was going to offer her a ride until he had his car in reverse. Luckily there weren't any other cars on the road. Otherwise he might have caused an accident and really been annoyed with her.

When he came to a stop beside her and rolled down the window, he noticed she looked startled, like she was afraid of him or something. His gaze flickered to his rearview mirror and he noticed he was still scowling. He rearranged his expression into the stoic one he usually wore and moved his onyx eyes back to Hinata who was still standing in the pouring rain staring at the open window. He had to resist the urge to scowl again. However he was pretty certain if he did than there was no way she was going to accept a ride from him.

"Get in," he ordered, slightly surprised that the words didn't come out like the growl he expected them to. They were firm and undoubtedly an order, but they weren't harsh. He was pretty sure if it had been had it been someone else he had stopped for they would have been. She seemed to relax slightly, the fear leaving her lavender eyes as she reached for the door.

"I'm w…wet," she stammered as she paused, her hand on the handle, her face close to the open window.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and leaned across the car. The movement caused her to back up and again he had to resist the urge to frown. He didn't like the idea that she really was afraid of him. Sure he was unapproachable but most people weren't afraid of him. This was definitely going to make his job harder. He pulled the handle of the car door and pushed it open.

"I noticed," he said as she stood there and stared at him. Her indigo hair hung in limp strands around her face, several pieces plastered against her pale skin. Her clothes were soaked through and sticking to her in various places and she had water dripping off her chin. She looked absolutely pathetic.

"Just get in the damn car," he said, slightly annoyed at having to repeat himself.

This time she did as he asked and slid into the car and onto his custom black leather seats. He tried not to wince as the water dripped off of her and onto his seat. He was going to have to get the interior treated after this.

"T…thank you," she stammered, as she placed her bag on the floor in front of her feet and beside his own.

He didn't say anything. Instead he reached over and turned up the heat for her since she was visibly shivering a bit. He had half a mind to ask her what in the hell she was doing walking around in this rain storm but he kept that question to himself. Instead he chose a different one.

"Where do you live," he asked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye. He watched as she tugged her soaked shirt away from her body still shivering though she was trying to hide the fact that she was cold.

"Byakugan Court."

Sasuke nodded his head. The street was only slightly out of the way back to his own apartment. It was a higher end part of the town, and given that Hinata was a Hyuga it made sense she would live there. Still for someone who came from a family with money, she didn't fit the stereotype. Her clothes were the furthest thing from style he could imagine, she wore her hair in a knot, she didn't appear to have a car, and she certainly lacked any form of confidence. Granted he was only just getting to know the girl beside him but he doubted his first impressions were that far off.

"Open up my bag," he ordered again as he pulled away from the curb.

Hinata complied without any argument or hesitation and reached down to unzip his backpack. His attention was on the road but he heard the zipper being pulled back. He had a sweatshirt on top of his books he figured she could use. Again he wasn't sure what possessed him to offer her his sweatshirt but it was a little late now. She would probably zip his bag right back up without a question if he told her to but that would make him look like some sort of idiot.

"You can wear that sweatshirt. It will help you warm up," he commented his eyes still on the road.

"I'll get it wet," she stammered. This time Sasuke did spare her a glance. She was holding his black zip-up hoodie in one hand, staring at him with those wide lavender eyes of hers. Seriously was that her only argument. He was pretty sure that they had already established that she was wet given the whole rainstorm.

"Just put it on," he ordered. This time she complied and unbuckled her seatbelt long enough to pull the sweatshirt around her. When he heard the click of the seatbelt being put back in place, he spared Hinata another look. Much like her own clothes, she was swimming in his sweatshirt. The black hoodie seemed to swallow her up. It made her look even smaller than she already did. It also made her look… cute? He shoved that thought out of his head almost before he had registered it. She still looked pathetic, and pathetic and cute didn't belong together.

The rest of the ride went in silence both of them content to listen to the rain as it landed against the roof and windshield of the car. Every so often Sasuke found himself glancing over at the quiet girl in his passenger seat, wondering what she was thinking. Most of the time she was staring out the window, her mind obviously in a different place. He found the silence almost foreign as his usual passengers, Naruto and Sakura, usually rambled on about something while he drove. Yet Hinata was silent, content not to speak, and he wasn't sure if he appreciated that or was annoyed by it.

He pulled into the driveway of the house, actually he supposed mansion was a more appropriate word, that Hinata indicated was hers and put the car in park. He turned his gaze to Hinata who unbuckled her seatbelt and wet to unzip his sweatshirt.

"Just keep it. You can give it back to me tomorrow," he muttered, and rather than argue with him she nodded her head slightly. She reached down and picked up her bag before timidly glancing back at him.

"Thank you Sasuke," she said softly as she opened the door.

"Hn."

He watched her climb out of his car and jog to the front door. She opened the door and turned around. She gave him a small wave and then ducked inside of her house. He sat there a moment longer staring at the now closed door, a frown settling itself on his features as his thoughts went in a direction he hadn't wanted. She did look cute in his sweatshirt.

* * *

**A/N**: So as promised there was some Sasu/Hina interaction in this story though I had no intention of writing it like this until I actually sat down and started to write out this chapter. I have an outline of how I want the story to go and this scene sort of snuck its way in there. Still I hope you all enjoyed it as well as the fact that I got both Hinata's and Sasuke's povs in this chapter. On another note, one thing I am trying to do with this story, besides keeping the characters in character, is also to keep it at a realistic pace. In other words I don't want to rush the pairing. I want to make it believable so hopefully I will do a good job with that.

Aside from that any of you who may read my _The Girl Unmasked, _I have not forgotten or abandoned it. I am currently working on it though my mind has not decided to cooperate enough to get up the next chapter just yet. And now that my rambling is done I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for reading!


	5. The Locker

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto

**Author's Note**: A quick thank you to my wonderful anon reviewers

Nemulos- Thank you so much! I am glad you like the way I am portraying Hinata

Jay_chAn- Thank you so much for the review. I promise there will be more adorable moments in the future for these two

Too lazy to log in- Thanks for the review. Don't worry her new style of dance will be revealed shortly

RhiaJ- Thanks for the review and here is the next chapter for you.

Luke I am your father- [covers ears] Thanks for the review! I have every intention on continuing this story so don't you worry

Shygirl~Hina- Thank you for another wonderful review! I am sorry to say there isn't as much SasuHina in this chapter but it is coming up

* * *

**Chapter Five**- The Locker

Hinata closed the door behind her and for a moment she leaned her head against it, her eyes closed as she took several slow breaths. Being in Sasuke's car with him had been suffocating. She wondered if he had any idea how intimidating his presence was. He was the type of person after all who could walk in a room and make the room seem as if it had shrunk to half of its size. He was simply the type of individual who demanded attention whether or not he was speaking. His silence was just as powerful as his words and Hinata found it quite overwhelming. It didn't help that he was so difficult to read either. She didn't know whether to continue being afraid of him or if he was genuinely a nice person.

Sure he had stopped to pick her up rather than leave her to walk home in the rain, but he had been practically scowling when he had pulled up next to her. Just thinking about the harsh glare coming from his dark eyes made her shutter. His eyes were intimidating to begin with, solid black and utterly unexpressive. They often said that eyes were the window to a person's soul but Sasuke's were a black abyss. They were enigmatic, captivating, and unsettling all at the same time. She imagined they were something akin to a colorful yet deadly animal that drew in its prey through its beauty before delivering its strike.

She shivered and she wasn't sure if it was from the direction of her thoughts or the fact that she was cold. She stepped away from the door and wrapped her arms around her shoulders before turning around to face the empty house. Hanabi wouldn't be home until after her tennis lesson finished and her father wouldn't be home until even later. Depending on how his day at work with he would mostly be back sometime after six.

With her arms still wrapped around her she headed upstairs for her room. Slipping inside she put her rather damp backpack onto her chair and pulled out her books and dance things. Thankfully they had stayed rather dry but to be on the safe side she spread her books out on her desk to dry. Setting her dance clothes on the end of her desk she then began to slip out of the clothes she was wearing. She paused as she began to pull off Sasuke's sweatshirt. For a second she stared blankly at the sleeve of the sweatshirt before she moved it closer to her face and inhaled. A warm blush crept up on her cheeks as she pulled her arm away and quickly tugged the sweatshirt off and placed it in a pile with her other clothes. She removed the rest of her clothes and wrapped herself in a big fluffy robe she had hanging in her closet.

She took her pile of damp clothes and threw them straight into the dryer before going back to her room in order to get a shower. Yet as she closed her bathroom door and turned on the water for her shower she still couldn't help but think about just how good Sasuke Uchiha's sweatshirt smelled.

* * *

She hadn't bothered to dry her hair after she had gotten out of the shower, instead she had tied it back into her usual knot letting it air-dry. She never put much more effort into her hair unless she had some fancy even to attend for her father's business. Then she at least made sure her hair was presentable. She had put on a pair of sweatpants and an old t-shirt that was at least two sizes too big. It didn't matter though she wasn't planning on going anywhere and she never gave much thought to her attire in the first place.

She settled down in the computer chair in front of her desk. Her lavender eyes examining the books she had scattered around the desk as she attempted to dry them. Sighing she reached for her English binder only to pause as her cell phone vibrated from where she had left it on her dresser. She got out of her computer chair and walked over to the phone, smiling as she noticed the caller.

"Hello," she said as she answered the phone, the smile still on her face.

"Hello. How was your first day back," asked Neji, his voice only a small comfort to actually having him around. She really did miss her cousin dearly even if he hadn't even been gone a month yet. Still his question caused the smile to fade. For a brief moment she was glad that he wasn't standing in front of her. He couldn't read her like he usually did.

"It was al…alright," she said hoping that he bought her lie. Still she heard his sigh on the other end of the line.

"You've always been a terrible liar Hinata. I don't have to be there to know you aren't telling me the truth," Neji said calmly.

"N…no it really wasn't t…to terrible," she stammered out not wanting him to jump to conclusions. Really other than all the fainting, not being able to dance ballet for the time being, and Karin's terrible comment. Oh she almost forgot about getting stuck in the rain. Okay so she supposed the day was pretty terrible but she wasn't going to share that with her overprotective cousin. She wouldn't be surprised if he got straight in his car and headed home. She didn't want him to do that either. As much as she liked having him around he deserved his time out at school.

"Kurenai wants me to t…try a new t..type of dance," she explained, taking his silence as a cue to continue with some sort of explanation. She figured she best include the truth so Neji wouldn't pick up that she was lying. She simply decided not to include all of the truth.

"I r…really don't want to," she confessed.

"I am sure Kurenai has her reasons. Besides maybe the change will be good for you. Your ballet is already great," Neji assured her.

His compliment meant a lot to her. Still she did not take it well and turned a light shade of pink despite the fact that she was alone in her room. Eager to shift the focus of the conversation away from herself she quickly recovered.

"How is school," she asked as she sat down on her bed, clutching her phone to her ear.

"It's… nice actually," Neji admitted to her. She was rather certain that it was nice for him. He was off on his own without her father breathing down his back. She was glad Neji had finally gotten out on his own.

"Good," Hinata said, the small smile returning to her features.

"I have a rather eccentric roommate though I suppose it could be worse," Neji explained.

Hinata winced. She could practically hear the annoyance in Neji's voice. His roommate must be something in order to get on her cousin's nerves. Unlike herself, Neji was quite good at guarding what he was feeling. So for his opinion to be so obvious over the phone, well it was certainly something.

"I spend a lot of time hanging out with Tenten. Not that I am complaining or anything," he added rather quickly, and Hinata assumed that Tenten was with him.

Neji and Tenten had been dating since their senior year though they had been friends long before that. Tenten was also one of the few girls Hinata could actually talk to. The year was only just starting and Hinata missed having someone around to talk to. Granted she had Shikamaru and Choji but there were some things better left discussed with other girls. She had Hanabi, but again it wasn't quite the same. Hinata was about to ask about her friend when she heard what sounded like a scuffle on the other end of the line. For a brief moment she thought the line disconnected before she heard a familiar voice on the other end of the line.

"I threatened to tell his roommate that he has been hiding out here," Tenten chirped pleasantly into the phone. Hinata laughed as an image of Neji sulking, or as close to sulking as he got, crept into her head.

"Hi Tenten," Hinata said after her laughter had died down.

"So how is it going at Kohona High," Tenten asked before holding the phone away from her mouth and yelling at Neji. "Stop sulking. I am not really going to tell him." Again Hinata found her self laughing despite the fact that she didn't really want to talk about high school.

"It c…could be better," she admitted. It was easier to confess her problems to Tenten than it was to Neji. For example talking to Neji about nearly fainting every time she saw Naruto was just not going to happen. She could share those things with Tenten.

"Oh boy. Tell me everything," Tenten demanded. Hinata sighed and settled back on her bed as she began to relay the day she had gone through to her friend.

* * *

Tenten had listened intently, making understanding noises when she explained about Naruto and the falling and fainting, and she had practically growled when she explained about Karin. She had also been reassuring about the change in her dance and slightly intrigued about the fact that Sasuke Uchiha had been the one to rescue her from the rain. Then Tenten had taken off for class. She had passed the phone back to Neji, who promised to call later on in the week, and the phone call ended.

Hinata felt considerably better from talking to the two of them, though at the same time she was again reminded of just how much she missed them. Setting her phone back down, she heard the buzzer on the dryer go off, and Hinata left her room to collect the laundry. As she walked down the hall she found herself rubbing her arms as the cool air caused her to feel a chill. The house was still empty though she suspected Hanabi to be home soon enough.

Stopping in front of the dryer she pulled out the clothes, which were still warm. Holding them close to her, she shut the dryer and headed back to her room. She set the clothes onto her bed and eyed them for a moment before taking her clothes and placing them into the clothes bin she had in her closet. She had dried them simply to keep them from turning musty. She would simply wash them with the rest of her clothes later. She turned back to the sweatshirt again and eyed it for a moment before walking over and carefully picking it up. She lifted it as if something was about to jump out at her and for a brief moment simply let it hang there in front of her face. She shook her head at her own foolishness. Quickly she folded the black sweatshirt. She would return it to Sasuke tomorrow, hopefully without any members of his fan club noticing. She much rather preferred being ignored to being targeted by half-crazed high school girls.

She jumped then at the knock on her door and dropped the sweatshirt onto the ground. Not a second later and her door swung open revealing Hanabi standing there in her tennis gear. Her sister was everything she wasn't. Hanabi was taller and far more slender than Hinata could ever hope to be. She was confident, stylish, and never had a problem making friends or getting dates. Her long dark hair was swept up into a neat twist, and despite the fact that she had come from a tennis lesson, her makeup was still flawless. Yet despite their differences, Hinata got along well with her sister.

"It is pouring outside," Hanabi announced as she walked over towards Hinata's bed. "Hey what's this," she asked as she bent over and scooped up the sweatshirt that Hinata had dropped onto the floor.

"Nothing," Hinata squeaked as she tried to snatch the sweatshirt away from Hanabi. Hanabi however was faster and jerked it out of her sister's reach. She opened the sweatshirt up and glanced at it before her lavender eyes, the same ones as Hinata's, traveled back to her sisters.

"And just where did you get this," Hanabi asked raising an arched brow in speculation. "And here I thought I was having a good day."

"It's n…nothing," Hinata stammered out again.

"You might as well stop lying," Hanabi said tossing the sweatshirt back at Hinata as she took a seat on the bed. "You are as red as a tomato. Plus you don't wear black and this is not close to your size."

At the mention of the word tomato Hinata felt herself heat up even more as she recalled a distinct conversation she had had with the owner of said sweatshirt only a few hours ago. She looked down at the sweatshirt to hide her increasing blush and quickly refolded the troublesome article of clothing. Apparently she was channeling Shikamaru now. She placed the sweatshirt back onto her desk and turned to face Hanabi who was staring at her expectantly. Hinata sighed and gave in before she fought a losing battle.

"A guy in my class lent it to me after I got caught out in the storm," she explained quickly, as well as quietly.

"You got caught out in that," Hanabi asked, obvious concern in her voice. Hinata nodded.

"Wait how did you get his sweatshirt then," Hanabi asked, prying more into Hinata's day.

"Well… he… ah," she stammered, her hands slightly fisted as she fiddled with her index fingers. "He sort of gave me a ride home," Hinata finally admitted.

"And then he gave you his sweatshirt," Hanabi squealed. "That is so cute."

Hinata winced as Hanabi drug out the word cute for far longer than it ought to be. Besides cute was not the word that first came to mind for Hinata. It was more like terrifying, or completely unfathomable. Sasuke Uchiha was certainly not the type of guy to stop and give absolute nobodies rides, though she supposed that statement wasn't exactly true after all, was it?

"So what's his name," Hanabi asked, once again drawing out her words.

"It… it was Sasuke," Hinata stammered out as she sat down at her desk. The conversation was rapidly draining her of what energy she had left after today.

"Sasuke as in Sasuke Uchiha," Hanabi exclaimed, her eyes widening. Apparently his status as heartthrob extended to Hanabi's private school as well. It was an all girl's school after all. "Okay my day officially sucks compared to yours."

"It… it wasn't like that," Hinata stammered. "He was just being… n…nice."

"From what I hear Sasuke Uchiha and nice don't belong in the same sentence. Actually come to think of it isn't he dating that Sakura bitch," Hanabi said wrinkling her nose as if saying the girl's name left a bad stench in the air.

"Hanabi," Hinata scolded to which Hanabi just scoffed.

"Well I am just pointing out the obvious."

"You don't know her," Hinata stated, playing with her index fingers once again. She wasn't really trying to defend Sakura but Hinata had never been one to say such callous things about another no matter what her opinion was.

"Yeah but I know of her and that's enough," Hanabi replied stubbornly. "You're just too nice."

"I… I heard that s…she broke up with S…Sasuke," Hinata added quietly.

"What," Hanabi exclaimed shooting up from her position of resting against the headboard. "She has got to have a few screws loose."

"You just said that Sasuke wasn't nice, how does that make Sakura crazy," Hinata asked, a small smile gracing her features at her sister's antics.

"Yeah but he is hot, he has money, he's a captain on the football team, oh and did I mention that he's is hot," Hanabi said with a giggle.

"Hanabi," Hinata exclaimed though by this point she too was laughing.

"Oh you know he's sexy," Hanabi said only to be cutoff by a pillow hitting her in the head.

* * *

Sasuke tossed his keys on the counter and flicked on light in his apartment. His onyx eyes glanced around the high rise apartment. It was stylish and modern but it very much lacked any sort of personality. It was Spartan style living, with no personal touches, but it was the way he preferred it. The apartment itself was completely spotless and it appeared almost unlived in. In fact the only time that this place ever got messy was when Naruto stayed for any extended period of time. Without ceremony he shrugged off his backpack and set it on the floor by counter.

He didn't have much in the way of homework tonight. It was only the first day of classes and most of his teachers hadn't bothered to give out any assignments yet. The only thing he had do was make sure he glanced over the few notes he had taken on Hinata for their English assignment. He frowned as he recalled that encounter. He hadn't really asked her that much nor had he given her much information to work with. Well it was a stupid assignment anyway.

He went straight to his room and changed out of his clothes and into a pair of basketball shorts, sneakers, and a black t-shirt. They hadn't had football practice today so he would have liked to go for a run, but given the rain that wasn't going to happen. So Sasuke decided to hit the gym instead. Grabbing his ipod from his room, a bottle of water from the fridge, and his keys from the counter, he headed out the of apartment. He never liked lingering when there wasn't anything to do.

* * *

Hinata sat at the dining room, a cloth napkin folded in her lap, her head bowed while her father chatted to Hanabi about her day. She picked at the food on her plate not hungry, but eating it anyway. It was easier than being reprimanded. She wanted the meal to be over. She wanted to retreat to the safety of her room, but for now all she did was sit in silence.

* * *

Sasuke sat at the table, one elbow propped on the table, his eyes focused on his food while the radio played quietly in the background. He picked at the take-out food he had picked up on his way home from the gym. He wasn't overly hungry but he ate anyway. It was a force of habit. Mostly he wanted to go to his room and go to bed, but for now he simply sat in silence with his half-eaten plate of food.

* * *

Hinata jotted down a few more notes that she wanted to mention about Sasuke when she gave his introduction tomorrow. She absolutely hated public speaking but it was for a grade and she didn't have a choice. She closed her binder and placed it into her backpack. She closed the bag and set Sasuke's sweatshirt on top of that so she wouldn't forget it in the morning. She went into the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. She changed into her pajamas then, a pair of shorts and a tank top. She walked down the hall and said goodnight to Hanabi before returning to her room. She shut her door and turned out the lights before crawling under the covers and curling up into ball before falling asleep.

* * *

Sasuke shut his binder, content now that he had looked over his only assignment. He wasn't overly concerned. Public speaking was a bit of a nuisance but it was hardly difficult. He picked up the binder and placed it into his backpack so he didn't forget it in the morning. He moved into his bathroom next, and got ready for bed. Walking back into his bedroom, he picked up his cell phone from his dresser and flipped it open. He opened the text message from Naruto which read 'Gonna sleep, c ya 2morrow bastard.' He sent back a simple 'Hn.' Flipping his phone shut, he placed it back on his dresser and stripped down to his boxers. He hit the lights and got into bed. A short time later he had fallen asleep.

* * *

When Sasuke walked into his second class of the day, AP Calculus, he was surprised to see his sweatshirt sitting on the desk he had been sitting in yesterday. His onyx eyes swept over the class and sure enough he caught sight of a mess of indigo hair. He made another note about Hinata Hyuga. She was smart. After all she was in just about all of his classes. From where he was standing he couldn't really see her face. Her head was tilted downward as if she was afraid to look up at the rest of the world. Again he noticed the style-less and shapeless clothes and the fact that she sat next to that lazy looking kid who appeared to be asleep.

As if she sensed his gaze on her she lifted her head upward slightly and peaked through the indigo tendrils of hair that hung in front of her face. Her lavender eyes met his own and he watched with a sense of almost smug satisfaction as her face colored an appealing shade of pink before she ducked away from his gaze and looked back toward his desk. Inwardly he smirked as he made his way towards his desk. He sat next to Shino in this class, which meant a very limited amount of talking. It wasn't something he minded. Sakura was in this class as well but she was seated on the other side of the room chatting away with her friend Ayame, who's father owned the local diner called Ichiraku's. The place happened to be Naruto's favorite place to eat and as a result Sasuke had frequented the place quite often.

Taking his seat he nodded to Shino, who nodded back in return. That would pretty much be the end of their conversation for the entire class. He pulled his calculus binder from his bag and opened it up on the desk in front of him as Asuma Sarutobi, the teacher for the class entered the room. He found his gaze then returning to the quiet girl who sat two rows in front of him. Her head was still tilted downward but she had her binder out as well, her pencil in hand, poised and attentive. Apparently she was one of those students who actually paid attention. It was more than he could say for himself. He picked up concepts quickly and without much trouble so he often found his mind wandering during class.

He could use the extra time to think though. He needed to come up with some sort of plan of action if he was going to take the fashion and social disaster that was Hinata Hyuga and turn her into the prom queen by the end of the year. He really couldn't help much with the fashion, well he supposed he could, but there was absolutely no way in hell he was going to put himself through that torture. He would probably have to enlist the help of Ino assuming she hadn't written him off because of the whole Sakura thing. Granted Sakura had broken up with him but he wasn't sure how the whole girl code worked. If not he could probably manage to charm some other girl into helping him, maybe someone like Karin.

He internally shuddered at the thought of the red head. Okay so he wouldn't ask Karin as she was probably his biggest stalker, but it wouldn't take much to charm a lesser member of his fan club. Still that was more effort than he was really willing to make. Ino would be his best bet, but first he supposed he was going to have to do his best to befriend Hinata. That was going to take enough of his effort as it was. She was turning out to be quite the mystery to him and he wasn't sure if he was more annoyed by that, or more intrigued. Either way any hopes of this being easy were sufficiently squashed.

"Sasuke?" Asuma's voice broke through his thoughts and he realized that Asuma was waiting for an answer.

Sasuke glanced at the board behind his teacher's head, the derivative printed on the board in his teacher's chicken scratch handwriting.

"Three x squared plus two x," he answered to which Asuma nodded and went on explaining how Sasuke had come up with that answer. Sasuke hated reviews. They were a waste of time, but he figured he'd better start paying at least a bit of attention. He could try talking to Hinata after class.

* * *

The bell rang signaling the end of calculus and the beginning of a brief study period before lunch. Everyone in the class seemed to stand simultaneously and Sasuke did as well. He shoved his calculus binder back into his bag along with the sweatshirt that had been returned to him. He skillfully maneuvered past a few students and managed to work his way over to Hinata's desk. Said girl looked up and her lavender eyes widened significantly when she realized he was standing by her desk. For a brief moment he thought her expression resembled something close to fear but if it was, she hid it quickly by looking down at her feet. He resisted the urge to grab her chin and force her to look at him but if she wasn't scared already that certainly would make her so.

"I just wanted to say thanks for returning the sweatshirt," he said casually, again finding himself having to initiate the conversation. It was out of character for him, and slightly annoying but apparently it was the only way he was going to have a chance at winning this bet. Just tolerating this girl like he figured he would have to do was obviously not going to work.

"T…thank… you for letting m…me use it," she stammered quietly, her gaze still on the floor.

Sasuke was vaguely aware that their conversation, if it could even be called that, had gathered a bit of a crowd. He paid it no mind though. It really wasn't his concern how the student body decided to waste its time.

"So I was wondering if…"

"S…sorry… but I can't b…be late," she said in a rushed voice as she cut him off and then proceeded to flee in the opposite direction.

"You wanted to make a complete ass out of me in front of the entire class," he growled as he finished his question in an entirely different manner than he had intended to. And she had in fact done that. He could feel the eyes of everyone left in the room staring at him while he stared at the door that she had just fled through. Even her lazy friend was looking at him curiously and Sasuke had the brief urge to deck him just because he wanted to hit something.

With waves of anger practically radiating from his body, everyone quickly moved out of his way as he stormed for the open door. Okay so he wasn't storming, an Uchiha didn't storm, but everyone sure as hell knew to stay out of his way. He still had the urge to hit someone. He was thoroughly pissed after all. It had been one thing that she didn't want to talk to him. He hadn't been happy with that but he was able to get over the fact that he would have to be the one to take the initiative in a conversation. It was another thing to have her run away from him because that was exactly what she had done.

"Hey bastard!"

The bubbly voice of his blonde friend sent him over the edge and a fist connected with the nearest locker. The loud sound caused everyone nearby to jump, but they all quickly went back to their business when they say the narrowed black eyes of Sasuke. They all had the sense to leave the seething individual alone. All of them except his blonde friend.

"What the hell man," Naruto practically yelled into his ear.

"You're lucky it wasn't your face," Sasuke replied darkly. After all Naruto was the one responsible for picking that girl of all people. He pulled his hand away from the now dented locker and winced as he opened his hand. He was going to need to ice pack.

"If you are going to hurt yourself do it after football season," Naruto said, obviously not overly concerned about Sasuke's threat.

"Eep…"

Both Naruto and Sasuke turned their heads in the direction of the small squeak, only to find a red-faced Hinata standing there. Sasuke's eyes narrowed again at his main source of frustration. She seemed to shrink back as he looked at her and part of him was pleased, but he knew that part of him was simply still sore at her. For a brief moment he thought she might turn around and run again but she surprised him by taking a small step forward instead.

"I can't t…tutor you or d…do your home…work," she stuttered. "I'm not that s…smart."

"What?" He found himself asking the question before he realized he was even talking.

"I may be a g…geek but I c…can't h…help you. I am a t…terrible t…teacher. So you can s…stop trying to be n…nice to me."

Naruto started laughing then, the hysterical kind of laughter. He noticed that Hinata turned an even brighter red at that ,her brief moment of confidence, though using the word confidence was a stretch, now gone.

"Sasuke doesn't nee d a tutor," Naruto said as he gasped for breath. "He's number one in our class," Naruto said as he hunched over and held his stomach in now silent laughter.

He noticed her eyes widened in surprise and traveled from the hysterical blonde back to him. He found all his earlier anger had vanished as he actually smirked at the shocked girl and nodded his head in confirmation.

"Oh… well… I… um…" Her face turned an even brighter red, a color he had never seen someone's skin turn before, as she dropped her gaze back to the floor. With his ego feeling slightly better, Sasuke folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the locker he had punched only a minute ago. He got a kick out of the fact that she had thought he wanted her to tutor him. Had that really been the reason she thought he was talking to her? He noticed then that she wasn't making any effort to move. She was simply standing there fiddling with her hands, her gaze locked on her feet.

"What now," he asked.

"Well… that's… umm… that's my locker," she stammered, finally looking up at him.

"Hn," he said before moving away from the locker, grabbing Naruto by the shoulder and shoving him down the hall in the opposite direction.

* * *

**A/N**: Longest chapter yet though unfortunately there wasn't much in the way of SasuHina moments but I tried to throw one in at the end there. I do apologize though, this chapter was a bit more of a filler. I wanted to try to paint a better picture of their lives outside of school including Hinata's relationships with her sister, Tenten, and Neji. Also I know at one point I jumped rather rapidly back and forth between the two but I actually liked how that turned out. Aside from that I plan to have more SasuHina bonding time in the next chapter so please be patient. Like I said I am trying to keep the pace realistic and the character close to in character. Anyway I hope you all enjoyed and thanks for reading!


	6. The Knight

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto in any way, shape, or form.

**Author's Note**: Okay first of I just wanted to say THAT YOU GUYS ARE ALL AWESOME! Okay I am hoping the caps got my point across. Five chapters in and the story has gotten over one hundred reviews. You have no idea how happy that makes me or how easy it makes this story to write. Just knowing that all of you are taking the time to read and review makes it worthwhile. Again you guys are amazing. Thank you all so much. Now onto some anon review replies.

Shygirl~hina: Thank you for yet another review! Yes Sasuke scares Hinata but I promise that will change… eventually

Jay-chAn: I do try to take into consideration my readers' reviews and suggestions. I believe that if you take the time to share them with me that it is my job to read them and take them into consideration. It is the least I can do. And don't worry there will be plenty of moments outside of school for these two. I already have several things planned.

And now onto the story.

* * *

**Chapter Six- **The Knight

By the time that his last class of the day had rolled around, Sasuke was feeling a bit more level-headed. He was back to his usual self and had a tight lid on his emotions. He certainly wasn't proud of the locker incident earlier. Not only did it bruise his ego but his hand was definitely still feeling the effects as well. He hated to admit it, but Naruto had been right. The last thing he needed was an injury to his hand at the start of the football season. Absentmindedly he flexed his sore hand, opening and closing his hand by his side. It was sore but nothing was broken so he supposed he couldn't complain.

He stepped into the classroom and went directly to his seat. He did however spare a glance at the Hyuga wallflower only to see that her eyes were locked on her desk as if she were afraid to make eye contact with him. Given his display earlier today he wouldn't be surprised if that were the case. It seemed like he had erased any progress he might have made with her by giving her a ride home and lending her his sweatshirt. For his small step forward he had undeniably taken two large ones back, and it took quite a bit of his self-control to keep a lid on the annoyance that he felt bubbling up. He had to wonder if this was all a waste of his time. So what if he lost the bet with Kiba, was it really worth the frustration?

He pushed that thought from his mind as he took his seat. He was an Uchiha. He wasn't about to lose at anything, especially to Kiba. He would just have to start all over again, though this time was bound to be a bit harder than the last. At least before she hadn't really had a reason to be afraid of him. Now he was rather certain that she was terrified of him. He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration and leaned back in his chair. He didn't even know where to start. He'd been in a relationship all through high school and even before that he hadn't been the one to do the pursuing. He was completely out of his element and too proud to admit it. Besides who would he go to for advice anyway, Naruto, Kakashi? He'd rather take his chances on his own. So his popularity and looks wouldn't get him by on this one. He would figure out something that would.

"You're late again!"

A student's voice in the front of the classroom caused Sasuke to focus on what was in front of him. He hadn't even realized that the bell had rung five minutes ago. His onyx gaze flickered to Kakashi who shrugged his shoulders, that same bored expression he always had on his face. Eventually the rest of the students in the class would learn to not bother pointing out the obvious of their teacher being late. It was going to happen every day. They'd be better off announcing when the man was actually on time.

"I got lost on the path of life," Kakashi offered.

He heard Ino scoff beside him and the grumble of a few other students. If only they knew just how many more lame excuses they would hear over the course of the semester. Having lived with the man for quite a few years, Sasuke was pretty sure he had heard them all though it did amaze him at just how terrible some of them were. He would never understand Kakashi's perpetual tardiness.

"Now today I had planned on having you all introduce your fellow classmates to me and the rest of the class. However it's been brought to my attention that this year all English teachers are required to implement the summer reading into their curriculum. So rather than giving you all a test during the first week of class I am going to give you an assignment instead," Kakashi explained as he walked over to his desk and picked up one of the books that it was littered with.

"This summer you were all required to read T.H. White's _The Once and Future King. _Now as you are all diligent students who do everything assigned to them, I am assuming that you have all read the book. Regardless your assignment is going to be a partner assignment in which you and your partner write your own Arthurian legend. Curses, magic, prophecies are all just ideas of what you may want to include, but you must put yourselves into the legend as the central characters. I want the legend to be written from both points of view, at least five pages each. However the papers must support one another which means that you have to work together. I'm passing out a rubric as well so that you can get a better understanding of what you want."

Sasuke watched as the rubrics were handed out and internally smirked at the fact that Hinata would have to turn around to hand him one when she passed the stack of papers back. For some reason the fact that she would have to look at him was like some sort of small victory. Sure enough when she turned to pass back to papers, lavender collided with onyx and her face flushed a pretty shade of pink underneath the dark strands of indigo hair that she hid behind. She quickly ducked her head and turned back around leaving him to stare momentarily at the back of her head, before he took a rubric and passed the stack of papers on.

"Alright I randomly assigned pairs for this project," Kakashi announced as he picked up a sheet of paper off his desk before he began to read off the pairs.

"Sasuke Uchiha and Idate Morino."

Internally Sasuke wasn't entirely sure how he felt about his partner. He was glad it wasn't some screaming fan girl but at the same time he supposed he had hoped to get assigned with Hinata Hyuga. It certainly couldn't hurt to have an excuse to learn more about her. Apparently he wasn't going to get that opportunity though. His dark eyes swept the classroom and he frowned slightly when he realized that his partner obviously wasn't in class. The second day of school and if Sasuke had to bet, it would be that Idate was skipping. How he was in AP English was beyond Sasuke.

"Ino Yamanaka and Shikamaru Nara."

Beside him Sasuke swore that Ino's face paled slightly. What shocked him even more was that in front of him Shikamaru actually visibly tensed. Sasuke didn't have the slightest idea what was between those two, but he couldn't honestly say that he cared. He had enough problems of his own and he certainly didn't need to concern himself with theirs.

"Hinata Hyuga and Choji Akimichi… yes?" Sasuke realized that it was Shikamaru with his hand in the air. Apparently he was now quite awake after hearing who his partner for this assignment was going to be. The kid actually looked relatively focused at the moment.

"Choji's out today. Food poisoning from bad barbecue," Shikamaru said, his tone bored much like Kakashi's

"Well then is anyone else's partner absent," Kakashi asked, his visible dark gray eye sweeping over his students. Sasuke hesitated for a moment before sticking his hand into the air.

"Perfect," Kakashi said as he leaned down and jotted something down on the paper he was holding. "Hinata you will work with Sasuke. Idate and Choji can work together when they both get back."

He watched as Hinata clearly tensed in front of him. She made it painfully obvious that she had no desire to work with him, but luckily for him she didn't have a choice in the matter. She was stuck with him until they finished this paper. Granted he was also stuck with her. He could only hope he didn't go and screw things up again this time around. He glanced down at the rubric and then back up and the head of indigo hair in front of him. He was determined not to mess up this second chance.

* * *

Of all the people that he could have been assigned to work with he had been stuck with Ino. He hadn't talked to her since the beginning of their freshman year and he hadn't planned on that changing this year either. He cursed his bad luck and let his head fall to the table in frustration. It didn't look like he was going to have a choice about talking to her now. He let his head rest on his hands which were splayed across his desk. Beside him he could practically feel Hinata's nerves. He knew that she was terrified of her partner. She had explained earlier her run-in with the stoic Uchiha after calculus class. She had been shaking then too. He was going to have to make sure she was going to be okay if not he'd talk to their teacher for her. He knew she wouldn't. She was too shy for her own good.

His thoughts drifted back to his own problem, the blonde in the seat behind him. He couldn't bring himself to turn around and look at her. Growing up, Ino had been his best friend along with Choji. The three of them had been inseparable as their parents had all been good friends. Ino was even his next store neighbor, though she didn't fit into the category of 'girl-next-store'. She was loud, opinionated, and stunning. She didn't go unnoticed. She attracted the attention of everyone in the room. He wasn't sure when he had fallen for her but it had been sometime during middle school. The only problem had been that at the time she had been in love with Sasuke just like every other middle school aged girl and Choji had liked her too.

Shikamaru was a good friend if he wasn't anything else and left his own feelings towards Ino unsaid. Instead he had encouraged Choji. Yet Choji's crush on Ino had faded unlike Shikamaru's own feelings towards her. Yet by that time high school had rolled around and everything had changed. Ino wanted to be popular and he and Choji certainly weren't part of the crowd that would let her be. At first she had tried to balance her time between the two groups but Shikamaru had recognized the losing battle so he had made it easy. He stopped trying to bother and she had done the same. Just like that their friendship went down the drain. He went into high school with Choji to watch his back and somewhere along the way they had picked up Hinata. Still as much as he didn't want to admit it, Ino's choice still left him bitter. It was something he just couldn't seem to let go and now he was going to have to face it whether he liked it or not. At least he was certain that he was over his blonde, ex-best friend.

* * *

Kakashi had given them the rest of the class to start working on their assignment rather than have them all introduce one another. Sasuke didn't mind, he could really care less hearing about the rest of the people in his class. It wasn't his concern. The assignment was due in two weeks, which in his mind was plenty of time though he did hear a few students complaining about not having enough time.

At the moment he was currently seated in the desk beside Hinata, the one her larger friend usually occupied. He had his binder spread out on the desk in front of him and a pen in hand, but so far Hinata hadn't looked up from her own desk. She was doing quite a good job at hiding her face from him, her strands of indigo hair falling between them so he couldn't get a clear view of her expression. He did his best not to let the annoyance show on his face. That would be the last thing he needed. He did his best to try to soften his intense gaze but the action felt awkward and so he quickly gave up. She was going to have to get used to the fact that his face didn't soften. It wasn't about her, it was simply the way that he looked. Naruto had told him once that he had the emotional capacity of a wall and he figured that was rather appropriate. It wasn't often that he showed any range of emotion like the frustration he had shown today.

"So do you have any ideas," he asked casually, finally breaking the silence that had settled between them.

It was ironic because usually he was the one who appreciated the silence, but not with the rest of their classmates chatting away, with perhaps the exception of Shikamaru and Ino, it felt almost awkward. He watched as she shook her head. He got a brief glimpse of her face and saw that her lavender eyes were locked on the desk in front of her. She really wanted nothing to do with him.

"Well did you read the book," he asked, trying again.

"Of c…course," she squeaked out.

"Well then I am sure you must have some ideas," he argued.

"I think you should be a knight," she blurted out so quickly that he almost missed it.

"Excuse me," he asked as she lifted her head for the first time to look at him.

"I said that I th…think you should be a kn…knight," she stammered out.

"No I heard that. I mean why would you think that," Sasuke asked, his curiosity the main reason for his question.

"I don't know. I guess… I guess because I can see you as o…one. It… it's like you demand respect. You're strong… a bit of a m…mystery, very s…stoic, and… and in… intimidating," she stammered out.

So the truth comes out. Not that he needed her to admit that she was terrified of him. He was pretty sure even Naruto would have been able to figure that one out and his blonde friend was, to put in bluntly, oblivious.

"Alright I'll be a knight then," he said after a moment. If he was going to make any progress with her he was going to have to start being nicer and that meant agreeing with her. It wasn't that he couldn't see himself as a knight, but if any other girl had suggested it he would have immediately said no. There was no way he would let himself be portrayed as some knight in shining armor off to rescue some helpless princess. He'd humor Hinata though if that was the story she wanted.

"What are you," he asked after a moment of silence.

"I p…picked for you. You should pick f…for m…me," she said in response.

"A princess," he ventured though his reply was more of a question itself than an answer.

"No," she said shaking her head. "I'm not the princess… my sister is."

Her voice was quiet, almost so much so that he missed what she had said. Still it created an interesting picture of what her life might be like. He thought back to what she had told him before. She liked to dance and press flowers and she had a younger sister named Hanabi. So in her house Hanabi was the princess. Still he didn't ask about the subject. It wasn't his business and Sasuke rarely involved himself in the business of others.

"Alright so you aren't a princess. How about a curse," he ventured again. He noticed her pick up her head at this idea. Apparently she was interested in that idea.

"A maiden cursed to remain unnoticed for the course of her life," he said, watching her from the corner of his eyes. He was pleased to see the small smile that graced her lips before she turned her gaze downward to write something down in her own binder. Granted that was what she was, unnoticed. She was the girl that no one paid any attention to, himself included before now.

"But why would a knight be interested in finding her, to break the curse," he questioned.

"He would search for her because if she were to ever be noticed by another their gift would be immortality while her own life would be forfeit. Her curse is not that others can't see her, but that she must make herself unnoticeable so she may live," she added quietly for once not tripping over her words. It was a viable reason. The quest for immortality wasn't something new to Arthurian legend. There had been Sir Galahad's quest for the Holy Grail, which was said to be able to offer those who drank from it immortality.

"And so the knight sets out in search of immortality and the unnoticeable maiden. Does he find her," Sasuke asked curiously.

"I th… think he should, but… we can decide later," she suggested.

"Alight. For now lets use the first page or two of the paper to set up the story. You need to address the curse and I will have to address gaining knowledge of the curse and what has happened to set the stage for their meeting."

She nodded and began to write in her binder. For a moment he watched as a small crease formed on her smooth skin as she concentrated on writing things down. He then turned his gaze away and began to quickly write down things in his notebook as well. Maybe this assignment was going to be just what he needed. He might even have to thank Kakashi later.

* * *

"Her mother died giving birth to her younger sister and shortly after that her father made a deal with a sorcerer. In exchange for wealth he offered up his eldest daughter to carry the curse," she said quietly. "She lives in the village of her birth, her secret as unnoticed as she."

"Hn," Sasuke said in acknowledgment. "Just how much of that is the truth," he asked before he realized it.

"N…not much of it," she stammered quietly. "She actually died from cancer when I was eight. As for my father…" she trailed off, letting what she might have said die at her lips. He didn't press her any further though, he had already learned one more thing.

"I'm sorry," he offered quietly knowing loss personally. She nodded and quickly looked away, indigo strands of hair once again hiding her face from his view. He hid behind expressionless features and she hid behind a wall of hair, the only difference was that while her hiding was obvious, his remained unnoticed. The silence between them suddenly seemed heavy and awkward so again he was quick to fill it, offering information on his own character.

"Orphaned at a young age as the result of the plague, he was taken in and raised by a knight. He seeks immortality not for himself but for his king. His true wishes are to ensure that his family name is remembered. This is his first true quest as a Knight of the Round Table."

"Is there truth in that as well?"

She startled him when she asked her question. He hadn't been certain she was listening but now she was looking at him, her pale lavender eyes resting on his own. For a moment it seemed as if she was daring him not answer her question when she had so honestly answered his own, but the confidence seemed to fade away rather quickly as she looked down. Still for some reason he couldn't quite understand he answered her.

"There was no plague. It was a drunk driver when I was six," he answered quietly, his face frozen in an unreadable expression. What he didn't mention was that he had managed to talk his older brother into talking his parents into letting him miss the informal business dinner that night. That while his parents and brother were killed he was at home with a babysitter watching cartoons, and that there was barely a day that went by when he didn't wish that he had been in the car too. No he kept that all to himself because no one knew that. No one really knew what was hidden behind his masked expression.

"I'm sorry too," she whispered and for a brief moment he thought she was going to lay her hand on his arm but she jerked it back rather quickly, like she had realized she was making some kind of mistake. Again he noticed her sadness, like his own loss was just as difficult for her to think about as her own was. Either way he didn't like the pity. He didn't deal with it well, so again he pressed forward with the assignment. The assignment was much safer than the topic they were hovering on at the moment.

"What about the theme of this," he asked as he looked away from Hinata and back down to his paper. "What kind of ending do we want to have?"

"Deception, betrayal, and tragedy," she answered surprising him yet again. What type of girl didn't choose a love story with a happily ever after?

"Arthurian legend is l…littered w… with it. Mordred's betrayal, Lancelot and Guinevere, Galahad's con…conception…"

She stopped when Sasuke held up his hand to silence her. Her cheeks flushed pink again but she didn't look away this time. She waited for what it was that he had to say.

"I get it. You don't have to list off every case to prove your point. We will fill our tale up deception, betrayal, and tragedy," he explained.

"W…we don't have to if y…you d…don't want to," she stammered out.

"No it's fine with me," he answered as he turned to jot their ideas down on his paper. Tragedy was certainly something he could relate to.

He glanced up at the clock when he heard the sounds of notes being closed around him. There was only about a minute left of class. He quickly went through the motions of putting his own books away before he let his eyes move to the window. The beginnings of a shower were falling against the glass, the gray sky an indicator of a long and dreary afternoon. If it got any harder, Iruka would move football practice inside and have them spend the afternoon in the weight rooms. Sasuke hoped the real rain would hold of until later. Still another thought had him turning back to his partner.

"Do you need a ride home today," he asked. She looked up from her bag, confusion clear on her face despite the fact that it was partially obscured by her hair.

"It's raining and well yesterday…" He trailed off feeling uncharacteristically foolish.

"Oh," she said as realization dawned on her. "No I have a ride," she answered just before the bell rang. She got out of her seat as he did only to pause and turn around. Again her lavender gaze met his own dark eyes.

"Thank you though," she said softly before being swallowed up in the stream of students making their way to the door.

* * *

They had been sitting next to one another in silence for the past hour. Everyone else in the classroom was busy chatting away with their partners. Hell even Sasuke and Hinata were talking and that was certainly saying something given that he didn't talk and she seemed like she was absolutely terrified of him.

For about the one hundredth time Ino lifted her pencil from the paper she had been doodling on and opened her mouth only to close it as soon as her pretty blue eyes rested on the slouched figure of Shikamaru beside her. His head was down on the desk and to everyone else it probably looked like he was sleeping. She figured he wasn't though. He looked too tense to be asleep. Annoyed she snapped her mouth shut and turned back to her paper. How was it that the person next to her had become such a complete stranger?

The thought made her frown, and tore at her conscious. It had been her fault after all. Her own selfish fault that she had drifted so far away from the person she had once considered one of her best friends. Shikamaru had always been someone she could count on no matter what, but she hadn't realized that until she had carelessly thrown it away.

Again she peeked over at him from the corner of her eye. She had been so close to taking the imitative and asking him out during the summer before the start of their freshman year. Sure she had been fawning over Sasuke throughout middle school but towards the end of it she had realized he wasn't the guy she wanted. She knew Shikamaru liked her too, at least back then, and had been waiting for him to just ask her out, but he never had. She remembered being frustrated, wondering if she was wrong about how he felt. Never one to be shy or soft-spoken she had decided to ask him, only to be talked out of it by Sakura. A life of social suicide, as Sakura had put it, or a life of social royalty. Ino had chosen the latter and she was still paying for it. She no longer believed the decision had been worth it. Sakura had changed and Ino was left wondering what if.

She sighed out loud, her frustration getting the better of her. She was certainly not shy and it annoyed her that she was so tongue twisted just because she got partnered up with Shikamaru. She bit her lower lip and then released it wondering if she could will the bell to ring with her mind. She glanced at the clock as the minute hand moved another click. Two minutes left of class meant that she could officially pack up her things. Quickly she shoved her things into her backpack, not noticing that beside her Shikamaru had sat up and was looking at her. When she finally did notice she narrowed her eyes at him.

"What," she snapped. "Did you finally wake up from your nap?"

"You're the princess or royalty of some sort, and I'm the peasant," he said in that bored tone of voice he always used.

"What?"

"Just like it has always been. You're somebody important and I'm the nobody. That can be the basis of our legend," he explained.

"Why," she asked wondering when she had been reduced to one word answers.

"Because it mirrors our lives Ino. You're somebody and I'm nobody. Relating the story to our lives will make it easier to write." The bell rang and she watched as he stood up and shrugged his backpack over one of his shoulders.

"Wait shouldn't we exchange numbers or something so we can talk about this some more," she asked finally finding her voice as she too stood up from her desk. She watched him pause though he didn't turn back around to face her. Still she heard his voice clearly enough.

"I already have your number Ino. I never got rid of it."

* * *

**A/N**: So a near crisis was averted with this story as well as my other story that are currently in progress. My computer decided to completely die on me. Needless to say all my notes, outlines, and portions that I have already written were recovered otherwise I probably would have been set back quite a bit. On another more cheerful note I got more SasuHina interaction in this chapter. I am using this project as a way for them to get a little closer and to establish a relationship outside of school. As for why I choose the book I did for their summer reading, well I have read parts of it and I thought it would allow for a bit of freedom when it came to creating an assignment for them to work on. Plus it helps them learn about one another. I also don't claim to know all that much about Arthurian legend so if I screw something up bear with me.

Also two new points of view in this chapter. I decided to through in a little ShikaIno in this chapter as they are a side pairing that I was planning to address. Needless to say they are not the main focus but they do get a bit of time in this chapter. Also I stuck with Sasuke's point of view for the most part in this chapter just because I think writing from his point of view makes it easier to keep him in character. By rationalizing his actions with his thoughts I feel like it makes the way I portray him more believable. Even still you will probably see a little bit of Hinata again coming up in the next chapter or so. As always I hope you enjoyed the chapter and thanks for reading!


	7. The Discovery

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

**Chapter Seven- **The Discovery

Hinata sat outside in the courtyard, her lunch sitting untouched in front of her. The weather was nice today as the sun was out creating a rather warm September day. She was currently sitting by herself at a table in the corner of the courtyard. Shikamaru had stayed after class no doubt to get in a game of Shogi with Asuma, and Choji was currently in the lunch line. So for the moment she was alone, content to bask in the warm sunlight that filtered down into the courtyard.

She tilted her head up towards the sky feeling the warmth on her face as she blocked out the sounds of students chatting away. The strands of hair that usually hung in front of her face had fallen away and her alabaster skin glowed pleasantly in the sunlight. The corners of her mouth tugged upwards ever so slightly in the smallest of smiles as she remained almost unmoving in her current position. Her pale eyes were closed and a look of complete contentment was visible on her face. This was after all a rare moment of peace that she felt while at school. Usually she felt anxious to make it through the day. It was rare she found a moment to relax when surrounded by her peers.

"Hey Hinata!"

She jerked her head back down towards the sound of the voice, her pale lavender gaze flying open only to collide with a set of blue eyes that she would know anywhere. Naruto was leaning across the table, his bright smile adorning his features as she stared wide-eyed at him. For a brief moment she forgot how to breathe. Her mind went completely blank as her eyes rested on his face so close to her own. She felt the terrible heat build up in her cheeks and her pale skin was rapidly painted with color, first a light pink to a full blow red color.

"Are you alright?"

His question seemed to awaken her traitorous mind though in that instant she chose to gasp at his closeness and jump in her seat. A sense of déjà vu swept over her as she felt herself falling backwards. It was just like the last time he had said hi to her. She shut her eyes tightly, bracing herself for the impact of the ground as her hands grasped at nothing but air. For a moment her body seemed to float backwards and then there was nothing.

The impact with the ground that she had expected never came. Instead she realized that someone was supporting her with a grip around both her upper arms. She felt herself being pushed back up into a sitting position and immediately her hands flew to the table to grip it tightly. She released a breath that she hadn't realized she had been holding and swiveled around in her seat to see who had caught her. Her gaze collided with Sasuke's and her eyes widened slightly.

"Sorry… th…thank you," she stammered out feeling almost uncomfortable under the scrutiny of his gaze. She shifted nervously in her seat, letting her gaze drop once again.

"Hey Sasuke nice catch," Naruto said, still grinning.

"Hn."

Hinata stole another glance at Sasuke to find that he was still looking at her. She quickly glanced away only to meet Naruto's gaze and have her cheeks instantly start to heat up. In the end she decided to look at the table as it was the safest option compared to the other two. Looking at Naruto was out of the question unless she wanted her face to remain the same shade as a tomato. As for Sasuke, well she still found it hard to be the main focus on his onyx eyes. His gaze was so intense that it truly rattled her in a way she had never quite experienced before.

Part of her rationalized that she was being foolish as Sasuke had been rather nice to her lately. Sure he had scowled at her considerably, but she had begun to realize that he scowled at everyone. In fact if she really thought about it, the fact that he seemed to scowl a little less at her should actually mean something. Not only that but she supposed Sasuke had been quite kind to her in his own way. That should mean something to her, and while she supposed it did, she still couldn't get over that piercing gaze of his. It was simply so unnerving that she couldn't seem to bring herself to face him. She was trying though, little by little she was forcing herself to grow accustomed to his stoic features and resolute gaze. She hoped one day it wouldn't seem quite so intimidating for her.

"We saw you were sitting alone," Naruto stated then, forcing her to look up from the table. She certainly didn't want to make him think that she was rude.

"Ch…Choji is in… the…the lunch l…line," she stammered.

"Oh well we can keep you company until he gets back. Right bastard," Naruto said glancing over Hinata's shoulder.

"Hn."

She stiffened ever so slightly as he sat down beside her. He was more than a comfortable distance away but still the presence of him and Naruto was overwhelming. She forced herself to relax but she was rather certain that Sasuke noticed her tension as she saw his frown darken ever so slightly though it was gone as quickly as it had come. She opened her mouth to apologize but quickly snapped it shut when Naruto spoke.

"Just ignore him. He is in one of his moods again," Naruto stated, shooting Sasuke a glare before turning his smiling face back towards her. It was enough to make her want to melt into her seat.

"So are you coming to our first game? It's next week."

She was pretty sure her face resembled the color of a stop light as she wrung her hands nervously in front of her, trying to force the words that were forming in her brain out of her mouth. She never imagined that Naruto could render her so speechless. Granted she supposed she wouldn't have anyway of knowing that as she always fainted before he got the chance. Even if she could barely talk this was a step in the right direction.

"I… um… I… always go to the g…games," she stammered out nervously, again ducking her head slightly just to hide her burning cheeks.

"Really you're awesome Hinata," Naruto stated rather loudly, causing Hinata to visibly jump in her seat.

"Th…thank you N…Naruto," she stuttered out. She opened her mouth to say something else. Something along the lines of how it was actually him that was awesome. Anything of the millions of things she had thought about him throughout high school. Yet before she could force the words to her mouth the moment was shattered. Again she nearly jumped straight out of her seat only this time it was due to a bowl of mashed potatoes landing smack dag in the middle of her table.

The potatoes splattered, fortunately missing her though that was hardly surprising as Sasuke was sitting close to her and only someone with a death wish would hit him with mashed potatoes. Naruto however wasn't so lucky. He now had mashed potatoes splattered on the front of his shirt. He shot straight up from his seat and whipped his head in the direction the projectile food had come from.

"Inuzuka you are dead," he shouted before bolting after a hysterically laughing Kiba.

* * *

Sasuke found himself searching out Hinata at lunch before he realized he was doing it. When it realized it, he found himself frowning but he didn't stop looking. He ended up spotting her sitting off at a table by herself. Part of him was pleased that he spotted her, he was without a doubt getting better at picking out the petite girl in the crowd. He found himself walking towards the table she was sitting at, only to stopped by the loudmouth.

"Hey bastard what's going on," Naruto said with that stupid grin painted on his face like it usually was. "Where are you going?"

For once in his life the idiot seemed to put two and two together. He glanced over in the direction that Sasuke had been heading and caught sight of Hinata sitting alone at her table. If it was possible, his grin only widened.

"Oh I know where you're heading," he said, drawing out his words in a way that made Sasuke want to smack him in the back of the head. "I'll join you," Naruto announced.

Sasuke opened his mouth to tell Naruto to get lost but the blonde had already taken off across the courtyard. Sasuke's frown deepened and he found himself following his friend despite the sudden urge to turn around and forget that he had ever come this way. He glanced ahead of him to where Hinata was sitting, her head tilted up towards the sky, obviously enjoying the warmth of the day. For once her hair wasn't in front of her face and he could see the porcelain skin glowing warmly in the sunlight. A soft smile was gracing her delicate features and the relaxed position of her face made her look like she had been captured by the talented brush of some artist. She was both peaceful looking and still, something rare for a student in high school.

He almost found himself annoyed at Naruto for disturbing her. He noticed that when she looked at the blonde, her face turned a brilliant shade of red and for some reason he moved towards her. It was a good thing he did because in the next instant she was falling backwards. He managed to catch her, his hands wrapping around her upper arms as he pushed her back into her seated position. She seemed flustered, the terrible stutter that she had back in full force as she apologized, something he ended up ignoring.

He took a seat beside her, his onyx eyes studying Hinata as she spoke to Naruto. Her face was still bright red. He had noticed that while her face tended to flush a pleasant shade of pink at certain times when he spoke with her, it never got quite so red nor did stay that way. Her stammering was also worse too.

It hit at that moment that Hinata like Naruto. It was all he could do not to let out a bitter laugh over the irony of it all. He choked it back down and settled for glaring at his dense blonde friend. The idiot was so clueless. His eyes traveled back to Hinata, who was doing her best to get through the conversation she was having with Naruto. This time Sasuke found himself wondering why Hinata preferred Naruto over himself. He actually found that it stung his pride a bit. When it came to girls, he was always the one they liked, not the other way around. Why was it different with Hinata? Figures his friend would pick the one girl in the school who liked him and task Sasuke with the job of turning her into prom queen.

A mashed potato bomb seemed to end his train of thought as well as Naruto's conversation with Hinata. The blonde and all his endless energy bolted from the table, dead set on destroying Inuzuka. Part of Sasuke hoped that Naruto actually succeeded. He looked away from the streak of blonde and back over at Hinata who actually seemed like she was beginning to regain her composure, though her face was still pink.

"We need to find some time to work on our project," he said after a moment.

She looked at him, her eyes widening as if she had forgotten he was there, which only served to annoy him further. She nodded her head then, a bit stupidly like she wasn't really listening to him. He found himself cursing his blonde friend again. However apparently she had heard him because she spoke then.

"I am busy after school and Saturdays," she finally said, her voice quiet though at least she had stopped stuttering. Now she just needed to speak louder so he didn't have to strain to hear her.

"Hn," he said thinking for a minute. "Well I am busy after school too. What about tonight?" He had football practices after school and he'd like to get a head start on this paper so he didn't have to spend his entire weekend on homework. He chose not to have much of a social life but that didn't mean he wanted to spend his days chained to his desk deriving equations and working on papers.

"I… uh… I guess I could work on it tonight. After f…five?"

"5:15 then. We can go to the library," he said shrugging his shoulders. He went to stand then, he noticed her large friend heading in the direction of the table. He stood and turned in the direction Naruto had shot off too. He hadn't planned on saying anything else but something stopped him and he turned around to face Hinata once again. He glanced down at her and noticed she was looking up at him, her pale lavender eyes questioning.

"Do you need a ride?"

"Oh…no… I can walk," she said quietly.

"That's stupid I can give you a ride. I'll pick you up at your house," Sasuke insisted.

"I won't be at my h…house," she stammered.

"Where will you be then," he said his voice taking on a slightly annoyed tone.

"Yuhi D…dance S…studio," she stammered her face flushing a shade of pink. He couldn't help it, he did feel a bit of satisfaction at seeing her blush. It wasn't just for Naruto.

"You dance," he found himself asking before he managed to choke the question back. He wasn't even sure why he asked. It didn't matter to him on way or another.

She nodded her head and then dropped her gaze as if expecting some sort of backlash from him. He didn't know what else to say so he simply walked away. Besides her friend, the bigger kid was looking at him funny. What was his name again? Choji, that was it. Sasuke moved away from the table and shoved his hands into his pockets, his mind anywhere but what was going on around him.

"Hey Sasuke wait up!"

He turned to face Naruto, who still had mashed potato on his shirt. Naruto jogged over, a grin on his face because there really wasn't a time when the blonde wasn't smiling. "So Hinata looked kind of pretty sitting there today. She shouldn't hide her face like she does," Naruto said, elbowing him in the side of the arm as if that was going to get him to agree with him.

"Hn," Sasuke said not sparing Naruto a glance. It was the best answer to give because it could mean anything and at the moment he really didn't want to tell Naruto that he actually agreed with him. Hinata Hyuga was indeed quite pretty.

Football practice let out a little early and Sasuke found himself pulling into the parking lot of the Yuhi Dance Studio just before five. He pulled into an open spot, and killed the engine, leaning back in his seat. At that moment at least ten girls filed out of the building, all of them chatting away. He winced and leaned lower in his seat despite the fact that his windows were tinted. He wasn't taking any chances. He watched as they all climbed into various cars and soon the parking lot was surprisingly empty. It made sense that there would be a break between this class and then next one.

Glancing around the now nearly empty parking lot, his gaze landed on a familiar car that had him furrowing his brows in concentration. Where had he seen that car before? Before his mind could produce an answer, it was given to him as Sai strolled out of the dance studio. Sasuke did a double take and Sai looked straight up at his car. Sasuke decided to open the door and climb out.

"You uh…" Sasuke started but trailed off, gesturing towards the building.

"Yeah, hip hop," Sai said, answering Sasuke's unasked question. "I started a year after I moved here."

"So that's how you know Hinata," he said more to himself, though Sai heard him and answered.

"Yeah, though she's been here longer than I have. Are you here for her," Sai asked, a curious tone to his voice.

"We are going to work on the English paper," Sasuke answered, quick to clarify his reasoning for picking up Hinata. He wasn't sure why he felt the need to but for some reason he wasn't quite ready to throw her to the sharks just yet with the rumors just a 'yes' answer could have stirred up.

"Well she's inside. Everyone else has pretty much cleared out. You're safe to go in," Sai said before offering his strange smile and then a wave. "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah see you later," Sasuke said still taking in the information he had just acquired. He had no idea that Sai did any sort of dancing. He doubted Naruto knew either otherwise Sasuke surely would have known as well. Naruto wasn't known for keeping his mouth shut about anything. With a shrug of his shoulders he decided to take Sai's word and made his way to the front door of the dance studio. He hesitated at the door for a moment and then finally pushed it open.

He stepped inside the building, the sounds of an instrumental drifting throughout the small building. He noticed that there were a few plastic chairs set out for what he assumed to be those watching the lesson, or at least waiting for it to be over. He took a few more steps forward and paused when he caught sight of the reflection in the full length mirror. From where he was standing he could see Hinata, completely absorbed in what she was doing.

Her hair was pulled back in a neat bun and out of her face. Again he was briefly struck by the fact that she was pretty when she moved her hair back away from her delicate features. She was wearing a leotard with thin top that fell off her shoulders and matching leg warmers. For the first time he was able to see her without the baggy clothes she wore in school. He was able to see an actually figure, and Hinata did have a figure. Yet that wasn't what struck him the most. It was her dancing.

He wasn't sure he had ever seen someone move so fluidly. She was so absorbed in what she was doing, her movements graceful. He wondered if she knew that when she was dancing there was a small smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. Her body moved to the rhythm of the song, each move flowing into the next creating a almost liquid motion that was both stunning and captivating. Unseen by her he was witnessing a completely different side of Hinata. A side that was… beautiful?

He was almost glad for the interruption that came then… _almost. _

"Hi I am Kurenai Yuhi. May I help you?"

Sasuke turned to see an older woman with long dark hair and red eyes emerging from a small office. He decided she had to be wearing contacts. He had never seen someone with bright red eyes before. Before he had a chance to answer he heard a startled 'eep' and immediately knew who it belonged to. He turned, his gaze meeting Hinata's through the mirror. Her face flushed red and she scurried off of the mat and out of sight.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha. I'm here to pick up Hinata," he said turning back to Kurenai. He noticed the look of surprise on Kurenai's face and once again he felt the need to clarify. "We are supposed to work on an English project. I was waiting outside but Sai told me I could go in."

"Oh of course. Have a seat, I am sure Hinata will be out in a few minutes," Kurenai said pleasantly.

Sasuke nodded and took a seat in one of the plastic chairs, his dark eyes making their way towards the room Hinata had disappeared into. He had had her labeled as the quiet girl with a few friends. The one who followed all the rules, did all her homework, and was perhaps even a little weird. Sure she was quiet and sure she only had a few friends. And sure she did all of her homework, but so did he. Why now though did it seem like his perception of her seemed so wrong, and he really did hate being wrong.

* * *

She stared in the mirror, her face still beat red. How long had he been standing there? Had he seen her dancing? She wasn't sure why that thought made her so embarrassed but she supposed it had something to do with the fact that for years her father had told her what a waste of time that her dancing was and that she ought to spend her time focusing on things that could actually get her places in life. His words stung and as a result she didn't share her passion with many others. Neji, Tenten, Hanabi, Choji, and Shikamaru were the only ones to see her dance, and even that was only at the recitals she invited them to.

She let out a frustrated sigh and quickly pulled off her dance attire and changed back into her school clothes, a pair of loose jeans and a loose t-shirt, giving herself a shapeless look. She reached up and pulled her hair out of her bun letting it fall down her back. She quickly gathered it back up and knotted into a messy ponytail, the strands falling in front of her face as they always did.

She stuffed her dance clothes back into her bag and quickly gathered up the rest of the things. She walked over to the door of the dressing room and froze in front of it. She glanced at the handle and took several deep breaths, trying her best to ignore the sudden round of nerves that had settled in the pit of her stomach. Yet she couldn't leave Sasuke standing out there much longer. She took one last deep breath and pushed the door open.

When she stepped out of the room, she saw Sasuke stand from where he was sitting. She unsuccessfully tried to hide the blush that creep onto her cheeks. The look Kurenai gave her only served to make it worse and she ducked her head to hide her face. She made her way over to Sasuke, nearly tripping over her own feet for not paying attention to where she was walking. She was too busy trying to hide her face.

"Are you ready to go," Sasuke asked, and she found herself nodding her head without looking up.

When they reached the door, she turned around and looked up to wave goodbye to Kurenai. Again she found herself wishing Kurenai wasn't looking at her like that because her face turned pink once again. She looked down and walked out of the dance studio. She fell into step beside Sasuke who had yet to say anything else. She snuck a glance at him only to see that he was looking straight ahead rather than at her.

"You… you were early," she stammered trying to break the silence. For once she found it unsettling.

"Football practice ended a bit early today. It didn't seem worth going home," he answered with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Oh," she said and then bit her lower lip nervously, unsure of what else she could say.

"How long have you been dancing," he asked, catching her off guard.

"Oh… awhile… over ten years," she said fiddling with her hands.

"You're good," he said.

Her face burned at the off-hand comment and she found herself once again stealing a peek at him. He wasn't looking at her still, instead he seemed intent on looking at his car.

"Thank you," she said quietly. Part of her wanted to tell him just how much those words meant to her but she didn't say anything else. She couldn't form the words she wanted to express. She snuck another glance at Sasuke's stoic features and then looked down, a smile tugging at her mouth. Maybe she was really wrong about Sasuke Uchiha. Maybe he wasn't quite so scary after all.

* * *

**A/N**: Okay so I put this down here because it is going to be a long one. First off I am sorry it took me so long to update. School is sucking away my soul at the moment. I have had so many papers and projects due over this last month. I also have been having a bit of trouble getting past this point in the story. I have future chapters written already. I am just having a problem getting past this snag. I have reached the point where I want more to happen but at the same time I don't want to rush anything. So it is making writing a bit more difficult for me, which may (though I hope it doesn't) show in this chapter.

As a result I actually started another plot bunny though this one is a ShikaTem story because I have really wanted to write a fanfic with Shikamaru as the center character. He is one of my favorites yet I always seem to avoid writing him as a main. I still plan on making this story my main focus however so no need to worry that it might be abandoned. Now enough rambling about that.

As usual I would like to thank you all for reading and I would also like to thank all of you who left anon reviews or those reviewers who I didn't get a chance to reply to. Last chapter got 30 reviews and you have no idea how happy that makes me! As always I hope you enjoy this chapter. I promise to try not to take so long to update again!


	8. The Dinner

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto

**Author's Notes:** For all of you I didn't get a chance to reply to, I apologize. Your reviews mean a lot and I have read each and every single one however school has been a complete nightmare so I haven't had much time to reply to reviews and write. So thank you all to reviewed and I hope you enjoy this chapter. One quick note is that the _italics_ are used to represent the story that is being written. It should be easy enough to follow. And also thank you all for patiently waiting for this chapter. As a reward it is the longest one to date.

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**Chapter Eight**- The Dinner

_There had been knights before. It wasn't surprising given the gift she held for the taking to the one who noticed her. Each one of them had been different, some cruel and sadistic, others almost fatherly in their actions. Yet in the end they had all been the same. They were all after the same thing, they all wanted immortality for themselves. They had all been met with no success as well. None of them had ever noticed her, none of them had ever even spared her a second glance. To be fair though no one noticed her, it wasn't just the knights that came through. Yet somehow she expected more from them. They were supposed to be different but they were the same as everyone else. She supposed she should be glad that no one noticed her because if they did that would be the end of her. Still a part of her didn't care about that. A part of her wished that someone would notice her even if it was only for an instant. No one ever did and she went on with her life, another face in the crowd._

_The day she first saw him she had left the small cottage she had just outside of the village. Her home was out just inside the edge of the forest that lined the village. There she tended to her garden and lived her life in solitude, only traveling into the village when she needed supplies. The day had seemed perfectly normal yet the village seemed abuzz for some reason unknown to her. In the marketplace she heard two women talking amongst themselves about the arrival of another knight. She was neither concerned nor hopeful at this news. This time would be no different than any of the others. This knight would search the village just as the others had done and he would never really see what was right in front of him. After awhile he would move on, claiming that the curse did not exist or that the woman he sought did not reside in this village._

_She visited several stalls that were set up in the marketplace, purchasing a few things for herself, nothing more than another face in the crowd. She never stayed long and as soon as she gotten what she had needed she left the market place. It was then that she saw him. Her first thought was that this knight was…_

Hinata stopped writing for a moment, her pencil hovering over the page as she discretely glanced up and studied Sasuke. He was seated across from her at the table they had found in the library. His head was tilted downward and his own hand was moving quickly across the paper in front of him. She noticed then that his handwriting was actually quite neat. Not the girly sort of neat with big rounded letters, put the perfect sort of print that made her almost envious. While her own handwriting was considered neat, she felt as if it paled in comparison to his own.

It was then that she realized his own hand had also paused over the paper. Realization dawned on her and she moved her gaze back up from Sasuke's paper to his face. Pale lavender clashed with onyx but for some reason she couldn't look away. Instead she froze, staring wide-eyed at him.

"What," Sasuke finally asked, his impassive expression changing into slight frown.

Only then did she feel her face heat up. She quickly jerked her hand as if she was writing something only to drop her pencil in the process. Sasuke shook his head and looked back down at his paper while she swallowed past a lump in her throat and carefully retrieved her pencil from the floor. She brought it back to her paper and stole one last glance Sasuke before pressing the pencil against the paper.

_Intimidating._

* * *

_Each face seemed to be the same, not one of them stood out to him. Of course he wasn't looking for someone who stood out, he was looking for someone who faded into the background, existing and yet never really seen. This village was perhaps as good as any to hide in for all of the faces seemed to blur into one unidentifiable mob. Still he prided himself on his eyes, he could often see what was unseen to most. He was able to spot the smallest of details, the farthest of objects. There was so little that his eyes missed. This was the reason he had come to this village. This was the reason that he believed he would find the what had never been found before. He would discover the gift of immortality and pass it on to his king for he had no desire to live forever, not when he lost so much. _

_He wasn't one to waste time and so he immediately set off through the market place, his eyes searching the faces, turning the unidentifiable mob into individuals. Each face became unique, each person someone to be noticed. He ignored the men, the curse had been passed to a woman, a woman who was rumored to be…_

Sasuke paused in his writing. He looked up only to realize that Hinata had abandoned her writing as well, her gaze focused on his paper. She was a girl that no one noticed, a girl that simply faded into the crowd of their school. Nothing about her stood out, she simply was a part of the background. Yet… he briefly thought back to today when she had been seated out in the courtyard, her head tilted back and her face clearly visible. Her face relaxed in a smile and skin smooth and pale.

"What," he asked when he realized that she was still staring.

She looked up, met his gaze, and then flushed a shade of red, speechless. It was attractive to see some color in her face though he wished it wasn't her whole face that turned to red. If only it was just her cheeks flushing that warm color. He looked back down at his paper as she fumbled to pick up her pencil.

_Beautiful. Of course it was only a rumor. No one had ever seen this woman before otherwise the curse would no longer exist. Beside he wondered how someone who was apparently near invisible could be considered beautiful. It didn't matter though because he was hardly considered with what the bearer of the curse looked like. He simply planned on finding her._

* * *

_He moved through the crowd with an unexpected grace, his movements almost captivating, each one fluid and flowing. Yet his face remained hard, like he carried the weight of the world on his shoulders, like he bore a curse much like her own. His eyes were darker than the night sky yet frighteningly observant. They seemed to dart in the direction of the slightest of movements. His skin was perhaps paler than her own, his ink black hair shorter than many of the knights that had come through the village before him, yet it was as wild and untamed as it seemed he was. She supposed that he was…_

Again Hinata stole a glance at Sasuke from across the table. This time the glance was discrete, she barely moved her head, just peered out at him from behind her thick strands of hair that fell in front of her face. She glanced at his face, masked in concentration, his lips pressed into a thin line, a brow slightly furrowed. She looked away before she got caught looking at him.

_Handsome. He very much resembled a marble sculpture, tall, imposing, and utterly impractical as he seemed flawless. Yet there was still something unnerving about him, something completely unsettling that made her want to keep her distance. Yet she found herself afraid to move. She feared even the slightest movement she made would be seen by those onyx eyes of his. Standing frozen in her place was becoming unbearable, her legs seemed to ache, she longed to move, and part of her even longed for him to be the one to see her. So she took a step…_

"Umm… Sasuke," she said quietly, setting her pencil down on her paper.

"Hn," he said as he looked up.

"How… how is he going to notice her?"

He shrugged his shoulders and said nothing.

"Oh," she said softly playing with her hands.

"I don't think he should notice her right away," he said after a moment of silence. "I think something should happen where he is forced to notice her. Then he can realize she is the one who is cursed."

"Perhaps he could fall ill," she suggested.

"Hn," he said before going back to his writing.

She took his one word answer as a yes because she realized that it was probably the closest thing she would get to an answer. She spared Sasuke one last glance before picking up her pencil and pressing it back to her paper.

_And as always she went unnoticed._

* * *

It had been a long and rather uneventful day. School had been incredibly boring but then again it always was. The teachers moved at a snail's pace and wondered why he slept through their classes. It wasn't his fault that he didn't require long drawn out lectures to understand something. All he had to do was glance at his text book every so often and things seemed to stick. Heck he wouldn't even due homework if it wasn't so troublesome to listen to his mother nag him about it. He couldn't wait until he was out of her clutches. He couldn't understand how his father was still married to the woman.

Of course it was possible that his thought stemmed from the fact that she was making him put away the dishes when all he really wanted to do was head up to his room and go to sleep. He frowned and kicked the washing machine closed, glad that his mother wasn't around to witness his blatant disregard for her kitchen appliance. Shoving his hands into his pocket he trudged up the stairs, scuffing his feet because he always drug his feet and he always got crap from his mother.

"Shikamaru stop stomping up those stairs," his mother snapped from the living room.

He groaned and actually lifted his feet up the last few stairs. He made his way down the hall and entered his room. It was a bit of a disaster and it would remain that way until his mother 'motivated' him to do it. As long as he knew where everything was then there was no problem.

He glanced at his window. His blind was shut, but that was hardly surprising. It had been shut ever since the start of high school despite his mother's protests about getting fresh air in his room. If he really felt the need to get some air in his room he opened the window but kept the blind down. It didn't help that Ino's window was directly across from his. When they had been younger he had always left the blind open. Times changed though and now the blind stayed shut.

He eyed his bed for a moment before walking over to his desk and sitting down at his laptop. He flipped it open and went through the process of logging onto his aim to chat with Choji and Hinata a bit before he called it a night. For once neither of them was on and so he resorted to checking his email. He frowned at the 50 unread messages in his inbox and determined that he was never giving out his email address on a standardized test again. He had never seen so many emails from different colleges in his life. He clicked off the places he hadn't heard of and therefore had no interest. However, his mouse came to a pause over one email that wasn't from a school. The email address looked oddly familiar so he clicked the 'no subject' message.

_It has been almost an entire year. She had been trapped inside this castle for 360 miserable days. Each morning she leaned outside the window of the tallest tower where she was trapped and watched the sunrise. Each evening she watched the sunset and each afternoon she watched the people in the village below go on with their lives while she remained prisoner in what had once been her home. A place which she had loved so dearly now held her hatred and there seemed to be no escape._

_For a curse had been placed on her home. Almost one year ago, to the very day, a lone knight had come to the castle in search of shelter and a warm meal. As an honorable Lord, her father had granted the knight his wishes and let him stay within the walls of their castle. It was this day that the lone knight first saw the Lord's daughter. He became captivated with the young woman and asked the Lord for his daughter's hand. The Lord refused for his daughter was his only child and he did not wish to lose her so soon and to someone he knew so little about. The knight went into a rage and the Lord immediately demanded he leave._

_Only then did the knight truly reveal himself for what he was, a dark sorcerer disguised by the armor of a knight and the shield he carried. He expelled everyone from the castle, everyone except her. He locked her up in the highest tower with one window to overlook the lands. He then cursed the castle, illusions and traps lurking everywhere both in and outside of his walls. If he could not have the young princess, she would remain here forever where no one could have her. No one would make it through his enchanted castle to save her, and the lord would never again see the daughter he so cherished. After a year the enchanted castle would finally fade away taking everything inside with it and she would be gone forever._

_The Lord, unable to go after his daughter himself due to failing health, offered all of his riches to the person who could enter the castle and save his daughter, he offered everything he owned. He even offered his daughter's hand as a reward to the man who saved her because having her married was far better than having her fade away. Many men came, eager for the riches or the prospect of marrying the princess, yet none succeeded. Some that entered the castle never returned, others stumbled out, their eyes wide with an unspoken fear. The Lord grew desperate as the year slowly began to come to a close. So he sent a letter to an old friend of his, a man he had fought beside. This man was the most intelligent man he had ever met and handy with a weapon as well. If anyone could rescue his daughter it would be him._

_A month after he had sent his letter, the reply came from a servant on horseback. 'My old friend I fear I am no longer the best suited for the task you ask of me for. Time has not been kind to my body and the ache of age has settled in my bones. And while I can boost that my mind is till sharp and clear there is another who surpasses even me. So my friend I am sending my son in my stead. He is neither knight nor noble-blood but I have great confidence in him to succeed in this task that so many others have failed. He should be along a day behind this letter. I am sorry I myself cannot make the long journey.'_

_And so the Lord waited, his eye on the horizon for the son of a man he considered a close friend. Time was rapidly slipping away and his daughter's life hung in the balance of a commoner. Yet he continued to cling to his hope._

Shikamaru stared at the email, his eyes scanning over it once again as he realized what it was. He blinked at the screen and scrolled down a little further when he realized that there was a little more to the email. His eyes scanned over what had been written at the bottom.

_P.S.- You're not the only one who's held onto things_

Shikamaru abruptly closed the screen to his laptop, the words echoing in his head as if she had just whispered them into his ear. He stood up and walked away from the laptop angry at himself for getting on it in the first place. He should have just gone to bed like he had been planning on doing. Walking over to his bed he paused by the window. He narrowed his eyes at the blind before looking away and back at his laptop.

He looked back at the window and lifted his hand. It froze in mid-air as he again eyed the window. After a moment of hesitation, his hand moved again. He opened the blind halfway.

* * *

A week drifted by. Whenever he and Hinata had some time they would make a trip to the library to work on Kakashi's paper. It was coming along but they still had plenty of work to do and only the rest of this week and the weekend left to do it. They had exchanged numbers, something that had been incredibly awkward to the point where it had been amusing. He wasn't quite sure he had ever seen her so red as he had when he had asked for her cell number.

He also wasn't quite sure why he began to look forward to working on the paper with her. It was a paper, hardly enjoyable but something about the time they spent in the library was relaxing. She was a calming presence if nothing else. That was certainly something he needed in his life. So when she tapped lightly against the side of his window he didn't find himself annoyed like he might have been if it was the dobe, tapping on the window of his car. He hit the unlocked button and she opened the car door before sliding inside, her bag on her lap.

"Hi Sasuke," she greeted in her soft voice.

"Hn," he replied internally pleased that over the week she had gradually gotten more used to him. While their time together was still generally spent in silence, she didn't jump when he spoke to her anymore and she seemed to be getting comfortable enough to actually ask him questions or greet him. Of course this was only outside of school. In school she retreated behind a wall of shyness that he found nearly unbelievable.

"Th…thank you for the ride," she said tripping over her words slightly. He would admit that the stuttering had gotten better around him but it was still there and it was still annoying.

"It's not a problem," he answered gruffly realizing that every time he picked her up the conversation began the same exact way, her always thanking him.

It usually ended there too because then she would turn and stare out the window. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. It was exactly what she was doing already. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, still damp from the quick shower he had grabbed after his football practice. He never knew what to say to the girl in the passenger seat of his car. Nothing ever came to mind and when he did try to say something it felt forced and a bit superficial. It wasn't so much that he minded the silence, he never had, and actually the silence between them was quite comfortable, it was that remaining silent didn't seem like a good way to get to know her. Running through possible ways to start up a conversation and coming up blank he settled for scowling at his steering wheel. He might have even glared at the source of his frustration if he wasn't so worried about frightening her.

"Are… are you looking forward to your g…game tomorrow?"

It took him a moment to realize she was actually talking to him. He glanced over at her to make sure he hadn't imagined the question and saw her looking back at him, her pale lavender eyes blinking once in surprise as he turned to face her. Reflexively he turned his gaze back to the road before taking the time to answer her question.

"Yes I always look forward to getting a season started," he said after a moment. "Are you still planning on going?"

"Yes," she squeaked. "I try to m…make all the home g…games. Before I would go to w…watch N…Neji."

He nodded. Neji had been a wide receiver as well. At first they hadn't gotten along because of a position rivalry, but eventually, mostly due to Naruto, they were able to put it aside. Between the two of them, someone had always been open. Now though with Neji gone Sasuke was going to forced to really step up his game to get open. No doubt he was going to be looking at being double teamed for the majority of the season. The only benefit to that was that it left other guys open and took some of the pressure off of Naruto. Not that his friend really ever worried about pressure.

"It's going to be a harder season without him around," Sasuke commented.

"I am sure that the t…team will do well anyway," she said, playing with her hands. "You may have l…lost a key offensive p…player but your defense is b…better this year, especially the s…secondary."

Sasuke was about ninety percent sure that his eyes widened. Of course if they had it was only for a fraction of a second. Hinata Hyuga was talking about a defensive secondary, and perhaps even scarier was that she was right. Their secondary was better this year because they had gotten a few strong players up from the freshman team this year. Of course how she knew this way beyond him. He glanced over at her, a questioning look on his face. Her eyes met his for a moment and she looked away with a slight blush.

"Ch…Choji is a really big football fan," she admitted.

He didn't give her an answer. He just nodded and pulled into the library parking lot.

* * *

_When the fever had set in, so had the delirium. He had fallen ill, violently so. Yet the time he had been sick he was nothing more than a mangled blur of faded memories somewhere in the back of his mind. He remembered violent thrashing, shakes, and desperate thirst. Yet littered in those memories was a soft voice and cool but gentle hands. He wasn't sure who his caretaker had been for when he had awoke from the fever there had been no one. He had been all alone in some small boarding house within the village._

_Curiosity had him seek out the owner of the home and ask who it was that had brought him here. He was dismayed to learn that the man could not remember anything other that it had been a young woman. Oddly enough he couldn't remember anything more about her. Heading back to room, for his body was still quite week, something occurred to him. He could remember a voice and a touch but not a face. The man who owned this makeshift inn could not remember this young woman's face either. She was cursed to remain unnoticed. _

_It had to be her. It made perfect sense because before he had fallen ill he had searched the village high and low to no avail. The woman who had brought him here was the one he was searching for. Now all he had to do was find her once again. _

* * *

_She knew it was a foolish thing to do, helping the very knight who was searching for her but she simply could not walk away from him during his time of need. He had been ill, terribly so, and so she had taken it on herself to nurse him back to health when she had stumbled across him in the woods that lined the village. He had been all alone, lying motionless on the ground and at first she had believed him to be dead. Yet the shallow rise and fall of his chest proved that there was life still left in his body. _

_She had stripped the armor from his body, as it was far too heavy for her to leave on, and ungracefully supported him back to the small cottage she called her home. There she began to task of nursing him back to health. It involved keeping him nourished and hydrated as well as warm when chills racked his body, and cool when he began to burn up. For three days she spent a vigil by the bedside, and when the fever began to break she returned him to town. During their return he had drifted in and out of consciousness, but he had remained on his feet with her help. She had left him and his armor in a room and then slipped away, leaving the only real contact she had had with another in years. _

* * *

_It had taken two more days for him to recover. During that time he desperately tried to remember the face of the woman who had helped him yet he came up with nothing. He closed his eyes and hear a soft voice, feel a kind touch, but there was nothing but a shadowed face that stood in her place. Frustration ate away at him as he cursed his damn eyes for missing what everyone else had. He was supposed to see what they missed and yet he had failed._

_That served to put a glower on his face as he made his way through the marketplace in search of a woman that he had heard, that he had felt, but he had never seen. He relied so heavily on his eyes, his sight was by far the most used of his senses so it was strange for him to focus on the memory of a sound and a touch. Lost in his thoughts he pushed his way past a young noblewoman batting her eyes at him and bumped into someone else._

"_Watch where you are going," he bit out, uncaring that it had been his own fault. He was hardly in the mood._

"_Sorry."_

_He whirled around as the apology echoed in his head. His gaze fell on a young woman, short in stature, her face hidden behind a veil of indigo hair. She turned away from him and hurried into the crowd as he stared at her retreating form. Suddenly his mind became clear and an image of an indigo haired young woman asleep in the chair beside his bed flashed in front of his eyes. Her features were pale and feminine, her skin alabaster. In his mind her eyes blinked open revealing an exotic color, a pale lavender. The woman in his memory flushed, her cheeks staining pink before she stood and rushed off to get something._

_He snapped back from his memory and quickly pushed through the crowd. That was her, the voice had been that same soft tone that had stayed with him. He was determined not to lose her now. His eyes, now aware of what he was looking for, scanned the crowd, desperation creeping into him when he realized he could not spot her. His face settled into a frown and he pushed past a wall of people. He spotted a splash of indigo against everything else and moved towards it, not caring who he pushed past to reach it. His eyes never left that color and soon she was within reach. His hand reached out and grabbed her arm, whirling her around to face him._

_The movement caused her hair to move away from her face and the woman from his memory was standing before him, her pale eyes wide as she stared up at him. His hand easily wrapped around her whole upper arm and for a brief moment he wondered how someone her size had been capable of moving him._

"_It's you."_

* * *

_When he bumped into her at the marketplace, she murmured her apology before she realized who it was that had collided with her. If she had realized who it was, she would have never let the word slip past her lips. Yet it was too late. He looked at her then and she moved away, hoping that her voice had been lost under the noise of the marketplace. Perhaps he didn't even have any recollection of what had happened. Still it was far better to be safe and so she fled as quickly as her feet would carry her through the busy market place. _

_She had nearly reached the end of the marketplace. In her mind she was free and clear of the danger, but just then she felt a strong hand wrap around her upper arm. She was whirled around and she barely managed to stay on her feet as she came face to face with the knight. He looked down at her and she realized then that he was looking at her. _

_He saw her…_

"Do you want to get something to eat?"

The question surprised her, especially since it was coming from the person seated across the table from her. She glanced up from her paper and met Sasuke's gaze. It was still intimidating but she found herself growing more comfortable with it. She no longer felt like squirming in her seat when he looked at her. Okay so maybe that was a bit of an overstatement. She didn't feel like squirming as much seemed more appropriate.

"Um… okay," she said though it sounded like more of a question than an answer. He didn't seem to mind though as he began to put his things away.

She glanced down at her own paper wrinkling her nose ever so slightly because she knew that they were going to have to finish it this weekend. It was due on Wednesday next week. She supposed though that they had a decent amount done already, but she doubted very much that Sasuke Uchiha wanted to spend his weekend with her. Without another word she quickly gathered up her own things, carefully putting them into her backpack. She wasn't the sort to shove things in unless she was attempting to rush somewhere. She looked up at saw that Sasuke standing there watching her with an unreadable expression on his face.

She blushed and looked back down at her bag. She decided to forget being careful and shoved the rest of her things into her bag. It was better than having him watch her.

* * *

The place Sasuke had taken them to was a small café not too far from the library. When she walked in, she was instantly greeted by the scent of garlic and other Italian spices. The small café was obviously Italian with dimmed lights and Italian music playing in the background. The place seemed intimate which was slightly intimidating but when she glanced around she saw several families seated in booths talking amongst themselves Instantly she relaxed.

However her relaxation vanished as the hostess walked up. She was slightly older than them, though not by too much. She was at least six inches taller than Hinata and had that who tall and slender thing going on. Her hair was shoulder length and brunette and her eyes a playful shade of green. She was very pretty but the way she was looking at her made her feel about as welcome as bad cold. She felt herself shirking back away from the hostess's glare only to bump into the wall. Realization dawned that it wasn't the wall that she had hit and she jumped away with a gasp, her cheeks turning pink with embarrassment as she muttered an apology.

She watched him shake his head slightly though it wasn't annoyance on his face. It was hard to tell with Sasuke but she was pretty sure that at the moment he was actually amused. She looked away when she realized she was staring trying to read him, and he stepped forward to get them a table. She followed wordlessly as the hostess led them to a table and left them with their menus. Hinata barely had time to open hers up when their waitress approached… and of course it had to be a waitress. Immediately she felt the scrutinizing gaze though it lasted only momentarily before the waitress moved on to staring at Sasuke with a smile so big it hurt Hinata's eyes.

"Can I get you anything to drink?"

Their waitress was a leggy blonde with her hair swept up in a clip. Her makeup was immaculate and her eyes were a sparkling gray. Hinata tugged at the frumpy shirt she was wearing and then glanced down at her menu. She felt practically invisible next to these girls. She resisted the urge to hide behind her menu as Sasuke gestured towards her indicating that the waitress should get her order. Again Hinata felt the scrutinizing gaze. She swallowed a lump in her throat and finally managed to choke out what she wanted.

"Can I just h..have w…water please," she stammered out.

"And for you," she purred as she turned back to Sasuke.

Hinata slumped in her seat and fiddled with her menu, relieved that the waitress was no longer glaring at her. She heard Sasuke order water as well and after a few more prolonged seconds the waitress moved away. Silence settled between them and Hinata allowed her eyes to remain on the menu because she could feel Sasuke's gaze from across the table. It wasn't harsh like the waitress's had been, it was more observant yet it still made her nervous.

She scanned through the items on the menu, her stomach growling softly at the choices she was presented with. It all looked quite good yet it only took a moment for her to make a decision on what she wanted. She glanced up as the waitress came back and placed their drinks and a basket of breadsticks on the table.

"Are you ready to order," she purred again, her gaze on Sasuke.

Sasuke promptly ignored her and directed his own question across the table to Hinata.

"Do you know what you want?"

Hinata nodded, still fiddling with her menu.

"Alright I'll have the Bruschetta and the Panzanlla," Sasuke said folding up his menu and handing it over to waitress who took it from him with a smile.

Hinata recognized them both as tomato dishes and was drawn back to their first day of English class where he had shared that he liked them. Apparently he hadn't been exaggerating.

"And for you," the waitress asked, turning to the look at her. The warmth in her voice was gone and had been replaced by an edge that again had Hinata wanting to hide behind something.

"Eggplant parmesan p…please."

The waitress turned back to Sasuke and again flashed him a smile.

"You're Bruschetta will be out shortly," she said before walking away with a sway to her hips that just couldn't be natural.

"You should stand up for yourself more," Sasuke said calmly from across the table nearly causing her to choke on the sip of water she had taken.

"Wha… what…" she stammered. Before she could get out any more words he continued.

"She is being rude to you but you don't say anything," he commented.

"I…" She dropped her head and fell silent any possible response dying before it left her lips.

"You need to learn not to take that sort of thing," he finished for her.

She shrunk back in her seat, her hunger forgotten and replaced by a regret for coming here. She could have just had him take her home. She got enough of this sort of talk from her father anyway. She certainly didn't need to hear it from Sasuke.

"Look I didn't mean to upset you," he said with a frustrated sigh. "It's just aggravating watching you let her talk to you like that."

"The only r…reason is because s…she doesn't l…like that I am here w…with you," Hinata said reaching forward and picking up a breadstick. She pulled off a piece and held it in her hand, chancing a glance up at Sasuke.

"What are you talking about," he asked.

"D…did you miss the way she has b…been talking t..to you," Hinata asked in disbelief.

"A lot of girls talk to me like that," he said dryly.

"She's pretty," Hinata said, her voice lowering in volume.

"Not interested," Sasuke said with a shrug.

"S…she doesn't seem to b…be aware of that," she stammered out.

"Yeah well they never are."

* * *

Sasuke watched from across the table as she laughed quietly at his last comment and bit into the piece of bread she had been holding in her hand. Her laughter, though quiet, was warm and oddly comforting. He reached for his water and took a sip, still studying her while she chewed on her bread. He had meant every bit of what he said. She should learn to stand up for herself more. Nor had he been lying when he said he wasn't interested in the waitress even if she was admittedly pretty. For some reason he couldn't even begin to grasp his own interest lay elsewhere. It lay with an indigo haired girl who forever seemed to remain unnoticed.

* * *

**A/N:** So next chapter will wrap up their project and be the first football game of the season. After next chapter things are going to start falling into place for their relationship. My current goal is just trying to establish them as comfortable with one another. I admit that right now it is a bit of an awkward relationship but that was what I was shooting for. For two people who don't talk much I imagine it would be hard to get a friendship off the ground. So any comments on the story's pacing are welcome. I am trying to get a feel as to whether or not you all think it is going too slow or at a good pace. I am pretty sure I have established Sasuke's growing interest in Hinata so next it will be her turn. If all goes according to plan that should start happening soon. Also I threw more ShikaIno into this chapter. I am curious as to whether or not you readers feel as though I should continue to throw this side pairing there. One final note it that the semester is almost over so hopefully this means I will have more time to write. I have had four 15+ page papers due over the last three weeks so I have been rather swamped. Thanks for those of you sticking with this story!


	9. The Game

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto.

**Author's Note**: Okay to my two big things are first I am so sorry this update took so long. I hit a serious case of writer's block and had to finish papers for school. The second thing is that this story has hit the 200 review mark! You guys are amazing for reviewing! Even taking the time to say you have liked the story means a lot to me. On that note I want to thank everyone that I didn't get a reply out to for their review. Also because we have hit the 200 review mark there is going to be a sneak peak for the next chapter at the end of this one. Also one other note is that this story looks best in 3/4 view. Granted it has taken me nine chapters to tell you all that but I just realized you could change the view! Now on with the story!

* * *

**Chapter Nine- The Game**

"Hanabi are you ready," Hinata called quietly through the closed door.

"You can come in," Hanabi called from the other side of the door.

Hinata reached up to the handle and pushed the door to her sister's room open. Hanabi was standing over by her vanity mirror, leaning over the surface and carefully applying eyeliner to her eyes.

"We are going to be late," Hinata commented as she watched her sister draw the dark liner around her eyes, making the paleness of her eyes pop even further.

"I'm not done making myself cute yet," Hanabi whined as she pulled the pencil away from her eye and glanced over at Hinata. "Just another minute," she added with a mock pout of her lips.

Hinata shook her head slightly but wandered over and sat down on her sister's bed, watching as she added a few final touches of makeup including a swipe of mascara and a clear coat of lip gloss. Like herself her sister had naturally pale skin, flawless and enviable. The real difference was that Hinata's features were softer than her sister's, her eyes slightly more of a lavender hue.

Hinata studied her sister briefly noting her appearance from behind the strands of hair that fell in front of her face. Hanabi was tall and slender and the clothes she wore only seemed to further emphasize that. She wore a pair of designer blue jeans that hugged her long legs and were tucked into her boots. She wore a black sweater that hugged her slender upper body, a lacy white tank top peeking out from underneath the sweater for a layered look. Her hair was straightened to perfection, not a single flyaway.

She caught sight of her own reflection and did her best not to immediately look away. As usual her face was obscured by thick strands of hair that has escaped the sloppy bun she had tied her hair back into. She wore a pair of jeans that were probably a size or two too large for her and a Kohona High hooded sweatshirt that was large enough to fit Hanabi into as well. On her feet she wore comfortable, yet slightly ragged sneakers, and behind the wall of hair there was no makeup on her face. She looked plain, another face to fade away into the crowd while Hanabi looked like she would stand out.

Hinata looked away from the mirror then and glanced out the open window. It was Friday night and the first game of the football season. The weather was cool but not yet cold and the sky was clear. It was a good night for the first game of the season. She was excited to see Naruto play, she always was. Yet another part of her was also excited to see Sasuke play as well. She'd become surprisingly comfortable with the stoic Uchiha.

"Okay," Hanabi said setting down the eyeliner and turning to face Hinata. She put a perfectly manicured hand on her hip and tapped her foot against the floor. "Weren't you just the one who just said we were going to be late?"

"Oh sorry," Hinata said looking away from the window and standing back up.

"Why are you apologizing," Hanabi asked with a laugh. "It's not my lifelong crush we are going to watch."

Hinata's eyes widened slightly and she felt the heat rush to her face. Hanabi covered her mouth with her hand and giggled softly into it.

"I… he… it's… I don't…"

"Breathe Hinata it's not like I haven't known about this for like the last ten years," Hanabi pointed out.

Hinata caught her lower lip between her teeth to cut off her stammering and nodded her head. Hanabi was right. She had know about it for nearly that long. In fact nearly everyone knew about it except Naruto himself. Shikamaru called him dense and Hinata supposed she had to agree with him. After all she wasn't very good at hiding that she liked him. It was a small miracle, in her mind at least, that he hadn't found out yet.

"You're right. Let's go," Hinata said after another moment before moving towards the door. The two headed down the steps and to the front door when their father called out from the office.

"Where are you two going?"

"The library. Hinata has an English report and I have to do one for French class," Hanabi called back before Hinata could answer.

"Hm. Fine I am sure Hinata could use your help on her report."

Hinata winced at the verbal jab that her father delivered without even trying. Her chin fell and her gaze dropped to her shoes. She felt Hanabi lay a hand on her shoulder and forced herself to look up and give her sister a wobbly smile.

"Actually father I need Hinata's help," Hanabi retorted in a tone that sounded so similar to his own. The only difference was this time the voice was being used in her defense.

"Don't wait up," Hanabi added as she grabbed Hinata's hand and drug her out the front door.

Once outside Hanabi released Hinata's hand and turned around to glare at the house. Scuffing a foot against the front deck she muttered "bastard" and then turned around to face her sister.

"Hanabi," Hinata said her tone mildly scolding.

"Well he is one. He treats you horribly and for no reason. You just let him do it too!"

"Well things are hard for him," Hinata said quietly as she began to poke her fingers together in an old nervous habit. "He is busy with work and ever since mom…"

"Stop making excuses for him," Hanabi said giving her the chance to end her sentence without saying the words. "Everyone knows it's not right."

Hinata sighed, recognizing the losing argument. Without another word passed between themselves the two headed for Hanabi's car. Climbing into the passenger seat Hinata was pulling on her seatbelt when she heard Hanabi start giggling beside her.

"What," Hinata asked eyeing her sister strangely.

"It's just that… I mean really the library on Friday night. I don't even think it stays open this late," Hanabi said bursting into another round of laughter.

The laughter was contagious and soon both girls were laughing as they pulled out of the driveway.

* * *

"Come on so which one is he," Hanabi said as she leaned over and whispered the question into Hinata's ear. "All this time and you still haven't told me."

Hinata shook her head in stubborn determination. Hanabi might know about her long standing crush on Naruto but unlike the rest of her friends Hanabi had no idea who Naruto was.

"If you don't tell me I am going to have to ask some random person," Hanabi threatened.

Hinata looked over at her only to realize that her sister was dead serious. Hinata's head feel forward in defeat and with a sigh she muttered Naruto's number, which was 7, to Hanabi. Looking up at her sister she immediately wished she hadn't she watched in horror as Hanabi stood up from the bleachers they were sitting on, right by the home bench of course.

"Go number seven," she yelled in a voice that would have been impressive if it wasn't so mortifying. Hinata was pretty sure that at that moment just about every head turned to look at Hanabi, who of course, was sitting right next to her.

* * *

"_Go number seven!"_

The shout was loud, incredibly so. Actually it was the kind of shout he expected from the blonde he was talking to or the blonde on the track currently waving pompoms and kicking her legs into the air. This time though the shout had come from someone different. Naruto heard it too and both of them turned around to see the source of the shout.

The thing of it was that once he turned his attention in the direction on the shout, he forgot all figuring out who it was. Instead his onyx gaze landed on the particularly red face of Hinata. She was seated on the bleachers behind the team, hunched slightly in a defensive posture as if the crowd was some sort of threat to her. She was wearing a Kohona sweatshirt that was again far too big from her and of course her hair was falling in front of her face like some sort of shield. He supposed it did look like the crowd might swallow her up. She had always looked small to him but sitting there surrounded by all those people she looked like a flower amongst trees. It was as if he looked away she might fade away into the sea of people and never seen again.

It frustrated him. She was so small and insignificant in the big picture and yet here he was staring at her like he was spellbound. It made no sense. There was nothing about her that stood out and yet suddenly he was always able to pick her out of a crowd. He was the one noticing the unnoticeable. The thought made him cringe, stupid Kakashi and that stupid English assignment.

"Dude," Naruto said smacking him in the helmet, causing Sasuke to shake his head slightly and finally turn away from Hinata.

"Have you even been listening to me," Naruto asked. Sasuke's lack of a reply was the only answer Naruto needed.

"I said that girl is pretty cute."

"What girl," Sasuke asked.

"The one who was yelling," Naruto said in a slightly louder voice just to get his point across. He motioned his hand back towards the bleachers and Sasuke caught sight of a slender dark-haired girl who was taking her seat again, a seat that happened to be right next to Hinata. He looked away quickly before he found himself staring again.

"Hey what's got you all distracted," Naruto teased, picking up on his tension.

"You," Sasuke answered coolly. "It's game time and checking out the crowd. You're supposed to be a team leader."

"What the," Naruto started. "I am a team leader. I'm perfectly focused! Come on team lets get lined up!"

Sasuke watched Naruto walk away yelling and shook his head in slight amusement. It was almost painfully easy to distract the dobe with something else. Sparing one last glace over his shoulder and at a particular individual in the bleachers he turned back to the team and jogged to catch up with Naruto.

* * *

There was about three minutes left in the third quarter. The score was 38-3. It had been painfully obvious from even the beginning of the game that the other team didn't stand a chance. Kohona was pretty much the team to beat this year and the other team simply wasn't up to par. The other team's players were beginning to get frustrated too.

From the sideline Iruka called the wide receiver reverse. It made sense. He probably wanted to get the play in during a game when they had room for error. After all Naruto had yet to grasp the play so far in practice. Sasuke went in motion and the ball was snapped. Moving behind Naruto, the blonde turned and pitched the ball perfectly. Again that amazing ability to not screw up during a game kicked in.

Sasuke caught the football and turned on the speed. He was one of the faster players on the field and he had no problem getting around the corner before he hit the sideline. On the outside, he ran down the field catching a flash of color slightly in front of him, moving towards the sidelines. He realized it was the other team's free safety. For a brief moment he considered moving off the sideline and getting around the guy. There wasn't any doubt in his mind that he couldn't. He had been burning the guy all day long and he knew he was skilled enough to get around him. He supposed the thought could have been considered cocky but he figured he was just well aware of how skilled he was.

In the end he decided to step out of bounds. The game was already well out of hand and while he was competitive in the fact that he didn't want to lose, he wasn't overly concerned with crushing the other team. A win was a win in his mind. He ran a few more yards and stepped out of bounds right in front of the home bench. A second later he felt a bone jarring impact as the free safety collided with him.

He hit the bench where some of his teammates were sitting and flipped over it. He reached out for the ground and came down hard. He landed on his stomach, his helmet digging up a clump of grass. In the background he heard the referee blowing hard on his whistle no doubt flags littering the ground from the late hit.

His first instinct was to jump to his feet and get in the other guys face but that was replaced by the realization that his body wasn't going to cooperate. An acute pain shot up his wrist and his legs throbbed from where he had slammed into the bench before flipping over it. He rolled over onto his back and with his hands that didn't hurt reached up and yanked the grass out of his helmet.

A second later and he was practically surrounded by people, Iruka and the school's physical trainer Shizune among the crowd. From his spot on the ground he could hear Naruto yelling at the opposing team's player and could mentally picture the blonde being held back by Shino and Kiba so he didn't rip the other guy's head off. A quarterback was supposed to be the one the rest of the team protected but with Naruto, if someone messed with one of his teammates than he was right up in their face giving them hell. Just then Naruto was looming over him, having pushed his way through the crowd of their other teammates.

"Are you alright," Naruto yelled down at him. Seriously did the idiot have to be so loud?

"I'm fine," Sasuke muttered, using his good arm to push himself into sitting position.

"You shouldn't move around so much until we check you out. Did you hit your head at all," Shizune asked.

"No," Sasuke said coolly. "I'm fine." He stubbornly pushed himself to his feet but winced a bit as he straightened. Shizune and Naruto both gave him a knowing look and he resisted the urge to glare at the both of them. He hated being fawned over.

"My wrist," he said after a moment.

"Alright Sasuke go with Shizune and get your wrist looked at. I'd rather have you healthy for the rest of the season than keep you in this game," Iruka said. "Naruto get your team back on the field!"

Naruto grinned and slapped Sasuke on the back, causing the latter to wince. His whole body felt sore at the moment. Shooting his blonde friend a glare he turned away from the game, not paying much attention as he followed Shizune back towards the locker room. Walking away he decided it was a good thing he never got the name from the free safety or else that guy would be in for hell later.

* * *

Hinata gasped in her seat as the play unfolded in front of her. The sound of one player crashing into another followed by the site of a Kohona player she was becoming quite familiar with flip over the bench and land hard had the noise escape from her lips. For a moment Sasuke didn't appear to be moving and that actually frightened her a bit, but he rolled over after a short delay.

"Ouch," Hanabi commented from beside her, no longer cheering at the top of her lungs as most of the crowd had fallen silent out of respect for the injured player.

"I hope he's alright," Hinata said in a voice quiet enough that not even Hanabi heard her. Her eyes remained on the crowd that had formed around Sasuke searching for anymore signs of movement. After a minute the crowd dissipated revealing Sasuke on his feet. A small smile crept onto her face, pleased to see that he was up and okay. However the smile faded as she watched him walk towards the locker room with the school's personal trainer. Again she found herself hoping he would be alright.

* * *

The final score had been 52-6. It hadn't been much of a game but Hinata was glad she had went. She always enjoyed going to games despite the fact that she was just another face amongst the mass of students. Standing up from her bleacher seat she nudged Hanabi in the direction of the steps. The two shuffled down the steps with the rest of the students, Hinata doing her best not to get run down. She really did hate being short sometimes. Pushing past a couple that was more interested in one another than moving she found herself staring at a Kohona jersey.

"Hey Hinata!"

She was pretty sure her heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice. Instantly her face heated up, staining her cheeks with a blush. She could barely bring herself to look up, and as she lifted her chin, her heart started racing. Her pale lavender eyes came to rest on the face of the school's golden boy. His beautiful blue eyes and disarray of blonde hair was enough to make her want to melt into the ground.

"N…Naruto," she stammered, surprised he was even talking to her. A small movement behind her gave her one brief moment of rational thought that she often seemed to lack around him. "Th…this is m…my sister H…Hanabi."

"Nice to meet you Hanabi," Naruto said with a brilliant smile.

"It's nice to meet you too," Hanabi replied with a sly smile to which Naruto of course was oblivious to.

"Did you guys enjoy the game? We creamed them!"

All Hinata could do was nod stupidly, leaving Hanabi to answer Naruto with completely formed sentences that didn't involve stuttering. A minute later though and one of Naruto's teammates was yelling for him. Naruto said goodbye before yelling back at his teammate and disappearing into the crowd. Hinata was finally able to breathe easier and when Hanabi touched her shoulder, the rest of her senses came back, and she moved forward once again.

* * *

Hinata was sitting at the table eating her lunch when Hanabi padded into the kitchen still wearing her pajamas. Setting down her sandwich on the plate in front of her Hinata waved at her younger sister. Hanabi made a face before yanking open the refrigerator door and burying her face inside of it. Hinata smiled at her younger sister and was reaching for her glass of water when her phone buzzed in her pocket. Digging her hand into the pocket of her loose jeans, she pulled out her cell phone. She froze when she glanced at the front display on her phone.

Sasuke.

She was pretty sure she wouldn't get used to seeing his name come up on her phone any time soon. She knew it was probably about meeting at the library in an hour or so to work on their paper, but it didn't lessen the shock of seeing his name on her phone.

Flipping her phone open, she opened up the text message and read it over. She paused when she reached the end of text message and proceeded to read it over again. She closed her phone and then stared down at her sandwich. He wanted to work on the paper at his apartment. She swallowed a nervous lump in her throat, no longer hungry for her food. It was bad enough working on the project with Sasuke at the library. At least other people were there with them. At his apartment though… It would just be the two of them, and Sasuke still intimidated her.

Unable to form a legitimate reason why that would be a problem she opened her phone back up and brought up a blank message and sent him back that she would be over soon. Closing the phone she shoved the other half of her sandwich across the table to Hanabi, who was now sitting there with a glass of milk, texting away on her phone.

"Thanks," Hanabi said as she glanced up from her phone.

"You're welcome," Hinata said before walking out of the kitchen before heading up to her room. She needed to get herself ready for this.

* * *

She wasn't sure how long she had been standing outside the door staring at it, but it had been longer than five minutes. At least one woman had walked by and looked at her like she was crazy. At least no one had said anything to her yet. Taking what had to be her hundredth deep breath, she raised her hand to ring the doorbell. She froze and found herself closing her eyes as she pushed the button.

Standing there with her backpack she felt the urge to flee and had to force herself to stand in place. She took another deep breath and told herself that she could do this. They were just going to work on their paper. It wasn't going to be any different than it usually was. She was simply making a big deal out of nothing.

The door in front of her swung open and instantly she felt her face heat up. Sasuke was standing there in a pair of shorts and a black beater. Now while she had always preferred blonde hair and blue eyes to dark features of Sasuke there was no way she could not notice all the flawless, pale skin that stretched taunt over muscle. He was simply standing there looking like some sort of Adonis with an almost amused expression on his face. In a way she was thankful for his injury, because the moment she caught sight of the brace on his wrist, she was able to get past the sight standing in front of her.

"Are you alright," she asked quietly, her lavender gaze moving from his wrist to his face to study the reaction to her question.

"Hn. It's just a sprain," he answered before stepping aside to let her in.

Sasuke's place was incredibly clean. Even cleaner than her own house, which was certainly saying something. It was a modern apartment and she supposed quite stylish. Yet it reminded her of her house. It was cold. There was a chill that didn't come from the temperature. There were no personal touches that she could see. It was like no one lived here though obviously that was not true. There were little things here and there that showed signs of life. There was an ice pack wrapped in a towel sitting on the island counter that separated the kitchen from the rest of the room, a bottle of water and some aspirin sitting beside it.

"Does it hurt," she blurted out as she turned around to face him.

In the process of doing so she bumped straight into him, causing a startled 'eep' to escape her lips as she took a step backwards and furiously fought with the blush that burned at her cheeks. Of course it was a losing battle, and she was all too aware that her face was quite red when she regained her balance and risked looking up at him.

* * *

When he had woken up this morning he had been sore, and as a result, he had been in a pretty lousy mood. He had downed some aspirin and relocated to the couch where he had put ice on the noticeable aches. All the while he cursed the idiot on the other team who had tackled him after the play had been dead.

Around lunch time he decided there was no way he was going to drag himself out of this apartment and sit in the library for a couple of hours working on an English paper. So he sent Hinata a text message and told her to come over. Normally he didn't like having company, aside from Naruto because the blonde didn't give him much of a choice, but the idea of having Hinata come by didn't bother him. It was probably because she was one of the few people who he didn't find as annoying as the rest. Sure there were little things that annoyed him but over all she was quiet and easy to be around.

So later on when his doorbell rang, he tossed his ice pack onto the counter and headed to the door. He didn't give much thought to the clothes he had on or anything regarding his appearance for that manner. He simply hauled open the door and watched as the normally pale face of Hinata turned red within a matter of a second. The sight was certainly amusing and he'd be lying if he said that he didn't get any male satisfaction from her reaction. It was strange because normally that sort of thing wasn't something he was concerned with. Yet this time… well he wasn't going to think into it.

He didn't have to either because Hinata asked a question. She also turned around and bumped straight into him. Again he got to watch a blush recolor her face. Surprisingly he wasn't annoyed, at least not as much as he might have been had it been someone else. He simply shook his head slightly and decided to answer her question.

"Not really. It's just sore," he admitted before brushing past her and motioning towards the table. His notes and laptop were already spread out on the table.

"Will… will you be able to play next game," Hinata asked from behind him.

He found himself nodding his head yes even though he wasn't entirely sure he would be. If it was up to him he would play. Shizune and Iruka might make him watch the game from the bench though. The thought annoyed him already. The sprain wasn't that bad. A few days rest and he'd probably he fine.

He watched as Hinata settled into a chair across the table from where he had his things. He took a seat as well, watching as she quietly pulled out her things and opened them up on the table. She looked up at him and caught him watching her. She blushed yet again and he found himself fighting off the urge to smirk. For the time being he decided to blame the aspirin.

* * *

A good four hours later and they were still sitting at his table. The only difference was that they had their project nearly done, and there was a half-eaten pizza sitting between them. After some consideration Sasuke had ordered a pizza and they had taken a short break to eat before getting back to the paper.

_He wasn't sure when it had happened, or how it had happened for that matter, but sometime after they had left the small village he had found her in, he realized that there was no way he could simply hand her over to his king. It was no longer about immortality. It was about her. He found himself caring about the fact that her life would be over as soon as he passed her on to his king. He found himself unable to condemn her to that fate. How, after each passing day that he had spent learning to know her, could he be expected to?_

_It left him frustrated with both himself and this girl. Just who was she after all to suddenly make him question his decision and the choices he had made? She made him regret ever having discovered who she was, and yet even that regret was tainted by the fact that he could not imagine having never met her. This whole experience had been like resurfacing after being under water for too long. He found himself questioning everything he was and everything he wanted to become. For some reason seeing the girl who was meant to be unseen had made him see himself as well. He had found that he didn't like the reflection staring back at him. And while he wanted to hate her for shattering the image he had built to get through each day, he couldn't. _

_So the question became what to do with the girl who had shattered the world he had seen only a week before. There was nothing special about her yet at the same time there was something special to him. He had considered simply moving on without her and yet every morning when he woke he found himself telling her to come along. He wanted her around and he wanted her far away. He no longer knew what he wanted. She had turned everything upside down and she had no idea. For every day she greeted him with a small smile and an honest face that spoke words when she said none. _

* * *

_She didn't know what to make of the knight who had found her. There were moments when he seemed to enjoy her company and then times that he looked at her as if she were no better than the dirt they walked on. Given the penetrating gaze that the knight possessed it was unnerving to stand there as his sole focus, especially when it was so full of disdain. Yet despite this his actions had been unfailingly courteous to her thus far. His actions had never meant her any harm. Of course she supposed the fact that he was simply leading her to her death contradicted that previous thought. But aside from his final intention everything else he had done had been kind._

_She found herself drawn to him in a strange way. She supposed it was because after all this time he had been the one to finally see her. She couldn't help but want to be around him, to be noticed, to know that when he looked at her, he actually saw her. It made her feel alive for the first time in years, and it was a feeling she would cling to with her dying breath. She could leave this place happily because for the time being she was one again a part of it. She could cherish this time and carry it with her. Whether or not the knight knew it, he had given her something to hold on to, something to embrace, something to make her unafraid of what lie ahead._

_So when she saw her knight, and she was unaware of when she had started referring to him as hers because in truth he was anything but, she went to him as she always did. They had come to an understanding that she would not run away when he left her. She could give him that in exchange for the feeling of life that he gave her. This time she found it strange for when she approached him he seemed not to notice her. It was as if his mind was miles away. She felt timid, unsure if she was interrupting him, but she spoke his name anyway._

_He turned and looked at her and that vacant look from before was gone. It was replaced by something else, something more sinister. It sent shivers up her spine. He told her to come with him and as always she listened. She followed him unquestioningly because he saw her and it was the least she could do._

* * *

_He couldn't find her and a rising panic was beginning to build up in his chest. He never panicked, and yet this time there was something nagging at him, something telling him to hurry. So hurry he did. He wasn't sure where he was hurrying to but he knew he had to find her. Something was wrong. He moved quickly in one direction. He wasn't sure why but it was as if he was being drawn that way, away from the village and out into the woods. He paused a brief moment and watched a snake sliver across the carpet of grass at his feet. His blood ran cold. He began to run now, further into the woods, his hand on the hilt of his sword._

"Um… Sasuke?"

He glanced up from what he had been writing and noticed Hinata was looking at some of his notes that he had given her in order to keep their stories in line.

"Hn?" It really was a versatile word serving as a question and response. It could be a negative or affirmative or even undetermined. Really it gave him a way to reply without ever really saying anything. It was something he could appreciate.

"It's just… well… I… I noticed that this evil warlock… well… the way you described him…"

"Spit it out already," he ordered after listening to her stammering long enough.

"He's a lot like Mr. Orochimaru," she blurted out.

Sasuke frowned and glanced down at his notes. He read over what he jotted down and after going over it in his mind he decided that she was right. He hadn't noticed that before though.

"I guess you're right," he admitted.

"I think he's creepy too," she whispered from across the table.

He said nothing in response, but he found that when he looked back down at his paper, a smirk had found its way across his features.

* * *

_She wasn't sure when she realized that the man she was following was not her knight. He looked like her night but there was something different. Yet by the time it had come clear to her it was far too late for her to save herself. She turned to flee but an ice cold hand on her wrist stilled her. The grip was like a vice, squeezing around her painfully and twisting her arm awkwardly. She bit back a cry and instead turned to face the man that the grip belonged to. No longer did she see the vision of her knight, instead it had been replaced by a ghostly white face. The man had long, dark hair that fell in front of his face. His eyes were yellow and his pupils slated like some sort of reptile. His face was gaunt, his skin stretched tight across it. He licked his lips and again she tried to flee only to have her wrist twisted further._

"_You have something I want. Give me my immortality."_

_She wasn't sure what she had thought her death would be like, but she could not have ever imagined the feeling of her life being drained from her. Like a dam giving way, the energy within her began to flood out. Her eyes glazed over and her legs gave out from under her. She crumpled to the ground, her body lacking the strength to move. She shuddered from the sudden feeling of cold that seemed to swallow her up. She was dying, something she had been preparing herself for this past week. Yet there was something missing, something she had been expecting. She didn't have her knight with her._

_She heard a shout then and realized it had been her name. The voice echoed through her mind and what was left of her spirits soared for a brief moment. Her knight was here. That was what had been missing. She clung to the life that drained from her body, dimly aware that the man who had taken it from her had moved away. She was alone and she didn't want to be, but all would be alright. She would die and someone would know, someone would feel something…_

* * *

_He was too late. He didn't save her. All of the internal struggle he had gone though had been for nothing. The source of his confusion lay unmoving on the ground and from the corner of his eye he saw her killer flee. He caught sight of the snake marking on the bottom of his clock. He recognized the marking. It belonged to a warlock known for his cruel experimentation with spells and potions on other people. He started to go after him, immortal or not he would find a way to kill him._

_Hearing his name stopped him. It was a whisper of a voice and briefly he thought that he had imagined it. He froze when he realized where it had come from. Torn between chasing down her killer and going to her, the slight twitch of her hand had him abandon his thoughts of pursuit. He kneeled by her side peering down at her face. Her lavender eyes had grown paler along with her skin. His hand reached out slowly and found her own, the temperature of her skin equivalent to ice._

"_Why did you follow him," he demanded, angry with her. This was her fault. She should have never followed him._

"_I… thought… it… was… you," she said, her voice lost upon the wind. _

"_My… knight. I'm not alone," she whispered and then a soft smile crossed her lips._

_Even in the face of his anger she simply smiled. She was gone after that, and he was surprised that he knew that so instantly. There was no doubt in his mind that the last of her life had faded away, gone to someone whose life was worth far less than her own. Again he felt bitter. She smiled at him, smiled at her death. She smiled because she hadn't been alone. He stood then, his gaze moving in the direction of the snake leech before falling back to the lifeless form at his feet, a death and a birth. The death of someone that nobody was supposed to notice, and the birth of the person who had, the birth of an avenger._

"_He will not enjoy immortality for long."_

* * *

It was pretty late by the time they finished up but the project was done. Hinata had packed up her things and helped him clean up the pizza they had eaten, despite his instance that he didn't need the help. Someone had called to tell her they were outside, and when she had hung up the phone, she had headed over to the door. She paused at the door however, her backpack slung over her shoulders and looking too large for her, and turned around to faced him, an unsure look on her features. After a moment a nervous smile graced her features, though it was still partially obscured by her hair.

"Have a good night Sasuke," she said quietly.

"I'll see you Monday," he replied after a moment.

She was smiling when the door closed behind her.

* * *

_**A/N**: _So I am not entirely happy with the way their story came out but it was supposed to include the tragedy and betrayal that Hinata wanted and personally I want to move on with the story. So if it feels rushed those are the reasons. From this point forward there will be more SasuHina moments (I hope!) so the story will start to pick up the pace. The next chapter will also be a fun one in case any of you were saddened by the way this one ended. Again I apologize if this chapter wasn't up to par (even if it was long) I simply need to get past this little bump and back into what I had planned on writing. Thanks for reading and I hope you all enjoyed!

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

"What happened to your face," Naruto exclaimed before bursting out into a fit of laughter. "This is priceless!"

Sasuke frowned at his blonde friend who though, still laughing, had his paintball gun trained on the two of them. What he wouldn't give to shoot Naruto right in that mouth of his. Maybe a mouthful of paint would quiet him down for once in his life. Still if he made any attempt to lift his own paintball gun Naruto was probably going to let him have it.

"Any last words Uchiha," Naruto asked, his voice taking on a dramatic tone that only Naruto was capable of pulling off.

Sasuke was about to execute some sort of roll that would hopefully cause Naruto to miss, he was a lousy shot anyway, when he felt his paint grenade being snatched from his hands. A second later the paint grenade was flying towards Naruto, and before anyone had a chance to react, the grenade nailed him straight in the head. Again paint flew everywhere, though most of it landed on its target.

This time it was Naruto's turn to look shocked as the paint dripped off of his mask. However Sasuke's attention wasn't on him. Instead it was on the girl who had thrown the paint grenade. Hinata, who was blushing underneath her mask, had just hit both himself and Naruto in the head with paint grenades. He wasn't sure if it was dumb luck or if she really had a throwing arm but he supposed it didn't matter. His gaze drifted to his best friend and he took in the sight of Naruto covered in paint. He watched as Naruto, who was only just now getting over the shock, clutch at his face with one of his hands as he staggered forward.

"Curse you Hinata," Naruto cried as he spun around and fell to the ground in a terrible impression of dying.

Sasuke watched his friend give one last dramatic twitch, and then he did something that he hadn't done in quite some time, he started laughing.


	10. The Paint

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto_

**Author's Note**: Here is the much awaited paintball chapter. The inspiration for this chapter came while watching 10 Things I Hate About You. It is another 90s chick flick, much like She's All That. Anyway as usual thank you all for reviewing. You are all wonderful!

* * *

**Chapter Ten- **The Paint

First period was always the hardest period to get through. It was one of the only classes where she didn't have a friend. Worse yet it was health class, which meant midway through the semester this would become her gym class. Gym class was one of her least favorite classes. She didn't mind the activities, but she was always the last girl picked for teams, and honestly, she was intimidated by most of the people in the class. So rather than play, she preferred to hang back in the corner and only participate when she was required to.

Sitting in her seat, she said nothing as the rest of the class chatted around her. Drawing meaningless scribbles on a piece of empty notebook paper, she nearly jumped out of her skin when Naruto dropped down into the seat beside her.

"Hey there Hinata!"

"H…h…hi," she squeaked out, her face instantly flushing a bright red.

"So this weekend is my birthday and instead of having a party a bunch of us are going to play paintball. Awesome," right," he asked before continuing. He didn't wait for her to answer and for that she was thankful. At the moment she was struggling to remember to breathe let alone talk.

"Anyway I wanted to invite you and your sister. The more people the more fun it is. "Right now Sasuke, Sai, Shino, and Kiba are all going. I invited other girls too but they all said no, so it would really mean a lot if you came. So what do you say? Will you go?"

She had no idea how to play paintball, and she imagined that she would be horrible at it. Going would also mean being around Naruto, which always seemed to end in her fainting. Plus he had rattled off the names of students who didn't associate with the likes of her, Sasuke excluded for some reason she couldn't understand. There was no way she could go. She wouldn't even last five minutes. She opened her mouth to tell him no thank you because that was the smart thing to do.

To her horror though she realized she was nodding her head yes. Her mind screamed no but her head said yes. Her eyes widened, and for a brief moment she considered taking back her nod. Yet the way Naruto's face lit up had her bite back the words on the tip of her tongue. He looked so happy.

"You are the best Hinata! It is going to be awesome," Naruto cheered, pumping a fist into the air.

All Hinata could do was stare at him and continue to nod her head like some sort of robot. It was really pathetic, and yet she continued to do it anyway because it was far safer than talking. And if the day wasn't already weird enough, Ino turned around in her seat to face the two of them.

"Hinata's going to go," she asked, raising a perfectly arched brow.

"Yeah she said she would. Hinata's awesome," he cheered again.

"Cool," Ino said, grinning at the two of them. "I'm in too Naruto."

"Wait, what? You said earlier that…"

"Please Naruto," Ino said rolling her eyes slightly. "I said I wouldn't go earlier because I didn't want to be the only girl running around with a bunch of meatheads. Sakura isn't going because she is too busy with her new boyfriend and well who cares about Karin because she is a bitch anyway. Since Hinata's going though, you can count me in. I can't let Hinata represent us girls all on her own," she said shooting a brilliant smile towards Hinata.

Between the Karin comment and the smile, Hinata determined that she liked Ino a bit better than she had before she had come to school this morning. She even managed to smile back.

* * *

She still couldn't believe that she had actually agreed to this. Of all the things she had allowed herself to get dragged into, it had to be paintball. She had never fired a gun in her life whether it be one of those toy Nerf guns, a cap gun, or anything else that 'shot' something. She had never been inclined towards violence or weapons for any reason. In fact aside from the occasional squishing of a bug, the only violent thing she did was occasionally play video games with Choji.

She stared down at the paintball gun that she held in one hand unsure of how to hold the thing. She ought to back out now before she made herself a living target and completely humiliated herself. Still Naruto had asked her to play and she hadn't actually fainted. She had even managed to respond. Unfortunately while her brain had said no thank you, her head had nodded yes. Now she was she was dressed in a drab green jumpsuit that had its pockets filled with ammunition and other things she had no idea how to use.

She lifted her gaze from the gun and saw everyone else going through their pockets and testing out their guns. Even Ino looked like she had an idea what she was doing, but that was probably because she had asked Kiba. Hinata swallowed a lump in her throat, trying to work up the nerve to ask for help without looking like a complete idiot. She looked around for Naruto but noticed that he was explaining to Hanabi what to do. She sighed and looked back down at her gun. This was going to be a complete disaster. Perhaps she could find a good spot to hide until every else finished shooting one another.

Just then she felt a hand on her shoulder. She nearly dropped the paintball gun as she jumped out of her skin. Whirling around she cam face to face with a set of unnerving coal black eyes. Sasuke was standing there clad in the same drab green jumpsuit as her own. He had a paintball gun and a mask in his hands.

"Do you know what you're doing," he asked, to which she shook her head, a blush creeping its way onto her cheeks. She heard him sigh before he set his gun and mask down on the ground and then faced her.

"Alright show me how you would hold the gun."

She looked at him but he offered no guidance and so she awkwardly lifted up the paintball gun. She held it out in front of her, away from her body at an awkward angle. For a brief moment she swore that she heard him chuckle but by the time she looked back at him, he looked as stoic as ever as he studied her. Again she had to resist the urge not to shudder under the intensity of his gaze. Those black eyes of his made her want to squirm right out of his gaze.

"Lift it up a bit and bring it closer to your body, it doesn't have to be against your shoulder but it should be close to it," he explained.

She attempted to follow his instructions but again she felt awkward standing there holding the paintball gun, and that feeling clearly showed. She tried to fidget with the way she was holding the weapon only to freeze as Sasuke reached around her and lifted the gun into the proper position. He didn't say a word as he placed his hand over her wrist and moved her hand to a new position on the gun. She wasn't sure what was more unsettling, the fact that his arms were around her, the fact that he was touching her, or the fact that she could feel his warm breath tickling the back of her neck. It was all she could do not to drop the gun and attempt to bolt, forget about actually paying attention to how she was supposed to hold the thing. Just when she was beginning to feel the need to wriggle out from the encasement of his arms, he dropped them back to his sides.

"Like that," he said with a nod.

She recovered quickly from the brief panic attack that Sasuke had induced and hefted the gun upwards a bit more to make the point that she had gotten how to hold it.

"Alright now your paintballs go into the hopper."

She gave him a completely blank look when she turned around to face him. He shook his head and tapped the plastic holder on the top of the gun.

"Just flip it open and pour them in there and you are set to go. The paintballs are in several of your pockets so try not to break them when you are running around. They aren't easy to break but falling on them will certainly do the trick. Oh and this," he said reaching into his own pocket and pulling out what appeared to be a black ball, "Is a paint grenade. Pull the orange cap and throw it."

He shoved the paint grenade back into one of his pockets and she again nodded, not trusting herself to speak in case she started that awful stuttering or said something stupid. However when she nodded, the mask that had been perched on the top of her head fell forward over her face. Before she had a chance to fix it however, Sasuke reached over and lifted it up, settling it into the proper position over her face.

She opened her mouth to say something, anything in return, but nothing came out and Sasuke turned away to retrieve his gun and mask off the ground. Without another word he turned and walked away, leaving her feeling slightly more confused than when she had first picked up the paintball gun.

* * *

The first thing she had done was bolt to the nearest source of cover and hide behind it. The inflatable barrier offered plenty of room to duck behind. Crouched behind it, holding her paintball gun with an unnecessarily tight in her hands, she listened to the sound of shouts and shots coming from everyone else. Biting her lower lip, she eyes the gun in her hands. Shakily, she opened one of the pockets of her jumpsuit and took out a handful of paintballs. With an uncertain hand she loaded the hopper and snapped the lid shut.

She then carefully eased her way up over the barrier so that just her eyes were peeking out over the top of it. At first she didn't see anyone, but after a minute she noticed Kiba dart from one barrier to the next. When he did, a series of shots rang out, some hitting him, others bouncing harmlessly into the dirt. His move caused Hanabi to bolt from her position as well, rolling from one barrier to the next. Naruto jumped out and started firing, and just like that chaos began.

Nervously Hinata brought her own gun up. She fingered the trigger as she poked it over the top, still staying close to the barrier. Naruto was still in front of her, his back facing her. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and pulled the trigger.

"Ouch," Naruto shouted as he whirled around, his gun raised towards her.

Her eyes had flown open at his outburst and widened suddenly when she saw the gun pointed in her direction. With an 'eep' she ducked back down behind the barrier before Naruto could get off a shot.

* * *

Under heavy fire from both Shino and Kiba, Sasuke bolted from his position and for the nearest cover. He could hear the paint balls whizzing past him and offhandedly thought that Hinata and Ino were probably better shots than the two of them. Though to their credit Sasuke did feel one paintball bounce off of his leg right before he darted behind the cover.

It turned out that his selection for cover had been poor as it was already in use. As he rounded the side of the inflatable barrier, Hinata whirled around, her paintball gun pointed straight at him. He froze just as she pulled the trigger. Only nothing came out other than the distinct sound of the carbon dioxide. From beneath her mask he saw her lavender eyes widen in surprise. Obviously she had forgotten to reload her hopper.

It was what happened next though that caught him off guard. As she frantically looked down at her pockets, he expected her to try and refill her hopper. Uninterested in shooting her at point blank range, Sasuke peaked over the barrier in order to make sure the coast was clear in order for him to move. As it turned out Kiba and Naruto were now shooting at one another and from where he was, he couldn't see Ino. Deciding now was as good a time as any, he turned only for his own eyes to widen in disbelief.

Clutching a paint grenade in one hand and the orange cap in the other was Hinata. As soon as she realized he had turned back towards her, she threw the grenade at him. At such a close distance it would have been impossible for her to miss, and she didn't. The paint grenade hit him directly in the mask, sending paint splattering everywhere including his hair. For a brief moment all he could do was stand there in shock as the paint dripped down his mask and onto his jump suit. Hinata took seemed like she was complete shock as she stood there staring at him, her mouth slightly agape.

The seconds continued to tick by and all the two could do was stare at one another while the paint continued to drip off of him. For some reason he was having the hardest time believing that she had just nailed him in the face with a paint grenade. Here he had spared her and she turns around and throws a paint grenade at him. Up until this point he had remained relatively paint free. Snapping back to reality as a stray paintball hit the barrier they were behind, Sasuke shook his head and reached into his own pocket, pulling out his paint grenade. If she wanted to nail him with a paint grenade he had every intention of returning the favor.

He heard her let out a squeak as he pulled the cap off of the grenade but before he had a chance to throw it at her, she took off. Again he found himself relatively stunned at just how quickly Hinata had taken off. Still he was determined to get his revenge and so he streaked off after her, abandoning all rational methods of attack. After all he was covered in paint now, what did it matter?

He saw Hinata look back at him as she nearly dove behind another barrier in order to get away from him. The barrier however wasn't very tall and so Sasuke got right up next to it on the other side. Carefully he began to ease his way up figuring that he'd be able to lean over and drop the paint grenade right on top of Hinata. As it turned out though, he wasn't the only one trying to peak over the top. Onyx clashed with lavender as the two of them came face to face with each other. Sasuke stared at Hinata from across the barrier, once again noticing how her eyes widened with surprise and her lips parted ever so slightly. The sight distracted him for a brief moment, but nevertheless he brought up the grenade. However it never left his hand.

"Freeze," Naruto shouted as he jumped out from more cover and pointed his paintball gun at both Sasuke and Hinata. "Man I always wanted to say that!"

Sasuke froze, his hand mid-air holding the paint ball grenade as he turned his gaze to Naruto, who was grinning ear to ear.

"What happened to your face," Naruto exclaimed before bursting out into a fit of laughter. "This is priceless!"

Sasuke frowned at his blonde friend who though, still laughing, had his paintball gun trained on the two of them. What he wouldn't give to shoot Naruto right in that mouth of his. Maybe a mouthful of paint would quiet him down for once in his life. Still if he made any attempt to lift his own paintball gun Naruto was probably going to let him have it.

"Any last words Uchiha," Naruto asked, his voice taking on a dramatic tone that only Naruto was capable of pulling off.

Sasuke was about to execute some sort of roll that would hopefully cause Naruto to miss, he was a lousy shot anyway, when he felt his paint grenade being snatched from his hands. A second later the paint grenade was flying towards Naruto, and before anyone had a chance to react, the grenade nailed him straight in the head. Again paint flew everywhere, though most of it landed on its target.

This time it was Naruto's turn to look shocked as the paint dripped off of his mask. However Sasuke's attention wasn't on him. Instead it was on the girl who had thrown the paint grenade. Hinata, who was blushing underneath her mask, had just hit both himself and Naruto in the head with paint grenades. He wasn't sure if it was dumb luck or if she really had a throwing arm but he supposed it didn't matter. His gaze drifted to his best friend and he took in the sight of Naruto covered in paint. He watched as Naruto, who was only just now getting over the shock, clutch at his face with one of his hands as he staggered forward.

"Curse you Hinata," Naruto cried as he spun around and fell to the ground in a terrible impression of dying.

Sasuke watched his friend give one last dramatic twitch, and then he did something that he hadn't done in quite some time, he started laughing.

* * *

She wasn't sure if she was more embarrassed, pleased, or shocked when she hit Naruto with the paint grenade. After all the fact that she had been able to hit both Sasuke and Naruto with the paint grenades was a rather impressive feat. Still if anything it had been more of a reflex reaction than anything. Both times she had thrown the grenades she hadn't been thinking. If she had been she probably would have never thrown them, especially at Sasuke. He was far too intimidating to think about throwing a paint grenade at. In fact as soon as the grenade had left her hand and hit him, she had wondered what he might do to her. She certainly did not one to be a target for his deadly aim.

Naruto on the other hand, well he wasn't as intimidating, and as she watched him give a dramatic presentation of his death by her paint ball grenade, she was having a hard time keeping a straight face. Still with Sasuke right next to her she was afraid that he might silence any laughter that escaped her lips with one of his glares. Only then did she realize that someone was already laughing, and only then did she realize that someone was Sasuke himself.

For a brief moment Hinata thought she was imagining things. She wasn't, and the warm sound of Sasuke's laughter was soon accompanied by Naruto's. She turned to look at Sasuke and felt her chest constrict almost painfully at the sight. Sasuke was smiling and even through the mask and the paint Hinata was certain that it was the most beautiful thing in the world. Sasuke was the type of person who looked attractive no matter what expression he wore on his face. However, there was no comparing the cold mask he usually wore to the smile on his lips right now. His teeth were perfect, the kind she had seen on dentistry ads. Did Sasuke have a single physical flaw?

Her thoughts were interrupted though as Hanabi popped out from behind a barrier and let a stream of paintballs fly from her gun. With an impressive amount of ease and grace, Sasuke shifted his weight and, using his arm to help, leapt over the barrier that she was currently hiding behind. He landed beside her in a half crouch, his movements more appropriate for some sort of graceful predator than a high school student. She stared at him in slight awe, her mouth hanging open slightly. Their eyes met, onyx clashing with lavender, and for a brief moment she was completely lost.

Then his hand shot out and landed on her shoulder. He shoved her down just as several paintballs peppered the barrier and flew overhead. The sound brought her back to reality and she looked away from Sasuke to hide the blush that bloomed across her cheeks. From behind the barrier she heard Naruto, who had been caught out in the open, yelp. She peaked around the side of the barrier to see him rolling over. He got hit with another paintball as he stood.

"No fair. I was laying there defenseless," Naruto yelled as he started to run.

"All is fair in war," Hanabi yelled back as she took off after him still firing shots from her gun.

It struck Hinata then how similar the two were. Both of them were loud, and while Naruto was a bit more obnoxious about it, Hanabi certainly had her moments. Both were genuinely good people that cared for those around them too. It was funny how she hadn't noticed it until now.

From behind her Sasuke cleared his throat causing her to turn around and face him. When she did, she realized that he now had his gun in his hands and was looking directly at her. While the smile had long since faded from his face, his eyes still held a bit of amusement that added a considerable amount of warmth to his features. Warmth that she found herself drawn to. It was nearly impossible not to start staring again.

"You might want to start running," he suggested.

Her eyes widened with realization as she glanced at the gun and then back at his face. She was still holding onto her own but the hopper was still empty. She hadn't reloaded it.

"I… uh… it's…," she stammered before she finally blurted out what she had been trying to say.

"You wouldn't. We are too close together."

Sasuke smirked again, reminding her how painfully attractive his smile was. She imagined how plain she must appear beside him, especially when he was smiling. She might as well not exist, and yet for some reason, he was still standing there with her. Even if he was threatening to shoot her with a paintball gun.

"That's why I suggested you start running," he replied smoothly.

One more look at his face and Hinata took off with a squeak, darting out from behind the barrier as fast as she could move. Behind her she would have sworn she heard a low chuckle once again.

* * *

Hinata was sitting on one of the wooden picnic benches that had been placed outside of the playing field. Her paintball gun and mask were sitting on the table beside her and she had a bottle of water clutched in between her hands. She took a sip of the water and stared at the pair chatting away in front of her. Hanabi and Naruto were seated in the grass laughing about something. Both of them had also abandoned their paintball guns and masks.

Hinata envied that fact that Hanabi's hair still looked flawless in its ponytail. Just like Ino not a strand seemed to be out of place. Her own hair was sticking to her forehead from sweating and probably sticking out each and every way. Running a hand through her bangs she pulled them away from her forehead and went back to watching her sister and Naruto. She watched Naruto lean closer, listening eagerly to whatever it was that Hanabi was saying.

It dawned on her then why Naruto had mentioned she bring Hanabi along. As she watched them, the obvious became quite clear. Naruto liked Hanabi. In that moment a little piece of her heart seemed to shatter. Naruto, the one she had always wanted, not only didn't want her, but he wanted Hanabi. The back of her eyes burned with unshed tears as the disappointment she was so familiar with sank in.

"You don't have a single drop of paint on you."

Her grief momentarily forgotten, she glanced up at Sasuke, who took a seat beside her and leaned back against the table. He too was a picture of perfection even though he was covered with smudges of paint from the grenade she had hit him with.

"I guess I don't," she answered back after glancing down at herself.

"Beginner's luck," he commented, to which she shook her head.

"You think you are that good then," he countered, raising a dark brow in a questioning way.

"No… I think some people may have missed on purpose," she commented back shyly as she looked up at him.

"Hn," he said with a shrug of his shoulders.

His response earned him a beaming smile from the wallflower beside him. From behind the usual pieces of hair that hung in front of her face, he was able to see it. It lit up her face in a way that was intriguing to him, and he found his fingers itching to push away her hair so that he could really see her. Even still it was a smile that erased all of the grief that had been there moments ago, and he was glad that he had taken the care to purposely miss when he had been shooting at her. It was uncharacteristic of him and he had caught himself doing it without even realizing. However, even after he had picked up on it, he kept on missing. Listening to her let out little startled noises as a paintball whizzed by her had kept him quite entertained.

He had caught her watching Naruto and Hanabi, and realized that what he had known already, had dawned on her. It had been interesting to watch the emotions play so clearly across her face despite the hair she hid behind. It had also been mildly unsettling. The pain that had flickered across her face had left him torn between going to her or walking over to Naruto and hauling him to his feet to give him hell. In the end he had gone over to her, unsure of his intention other than to distract her from what she was feeling. It seemed to be working too, and while he wasn't one to give much concern to how other's felt, he was actually glad that he had at least momentarily succeeded.

He ignored the part of his brain that pointed out that he shouldn't care so much. He also ignored the odd feeling that seemed to creep up on him when she smiled. And finally he ignored the completely irrational part of himself that was glad that Naruto was interested in someone other than her. He watched as she looked back down at the water in her hands, a small smile still present on her lips. He dropped his own gaze to his paint covered jumpsuit and wondered when the hell he had ever started to care.

* * *

"Hey Hinata."

"Hi Tenten," Hinata said quietly into the phone.

She had just gotten out of the shower. She hadn't had to worry about scrubbing paint off herself, because surprisingly she hadn't been hit with anything, but she had wanted to wash away the sweat and grime that had covered her from playing. She was sitting on her bed wearing a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Her hair was still wet, but it was already pulled back into a messy bun. She planned on drying it, but she wanted to talk to someone first. Tenten was one of the few female friends she had aside from Hanabi, and this wasn't something she could talk about with her sister.

"What's up girl? If you have been trying to get a hold of Neji, he is sound asleep on my couch… something about his roommate trying to get him up at five in the morning to run youthful laps around the school."

Hinata giggled into the phone as she pulled a pillow over and covered her lap, hugging it slightly to her chest. From the sound of things Neji was having roommate troubles. Hinata wasn't overly worried though. She knew that Neji was perfectly capable of taking care of himself and Tenten was there for him as well.

"I actually wanted to t…talk to you," Hinata said after her laughter subsided. "I just n…needed another g…girl to talk to."

"Hold on Hinata. Let me sit myself down for this," Tenten announced. There was a slight pause after that before she spoke again.

"Okay you have my undivided attention. What's going on?"

"Well it's N…Naruto," she paused and then a sigh escaped her lips. "Again."

"It usually is," Tenten supplied.

"Well… I am p…pretty sure he likes someone else," Hinata whispered into the phone.

"Honey we've been through this before. If that boy wasn't so dense he would have realized by now what an awesome thing he could have with you! Someone really ought to just smack some sense into him. But really," Tenten ranted on, "in all honesty I am sure this crush of his is going to pass. It will be just like the others."

"Tenten," Hinata started trying to stop the older girl's speech. She knew that they had had this conversation many times before, and she knew that Tenten probably thought it was the same this time. It wasn't though. It wasn't even close.

Tenten kept on talking, spilling out reassurances like a good friend who had heard the same story one too many times was supposed to. And so Hinata did the only thing she could think of to get her friend to stop talking. She blurted the problem out.

"It's Hanabi. He likes Hanabi."

When she blurted out those words she waited for the pain to come. The gut-wrenching pain of wanting someone who barely knew she existed, the pain of having that same someone fall for someone else. She expected it to tear at her heart like it had done so many times before, only she expected it to be so much worse this time. She waited for the pain and yet all that came was a small ache. An ache from losing something that had been a part of her for so long.

A shocked silence followed, during which neither girl spoke. Hinata was consumed by her own thoughts, not understanding why it didn't matter anymore. What had changed? Before she managed to give the question much thought Tenten launched herself into full on friend mode.

"Oh my goodness Hinata I am so sorry! Wait does Hanabi know? I am sure if you tell her she will back off. She would never do that to you! Do you want me to drive back? I can be there in like two hours if I leave now. We can have some much needed girl talk and eat ice cream and chocolate until we feel like we are going to puke."

"Don't be silly. You don't have to d…drive all the way back here," Hinata said when Tenten finally paused to take a breath.

"I would though. If you need me just say the word," Tenten protested.

"I'm fine," Hianta said. "Really."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Hinata answered, surprised at how true her answer was. She really was fine, and as much as she appreciated Tenten's offer, she didn't need the older girl.

"So you're sure you're alright?"

"Yes Tenten," she said with a small sigh. "It's not like…"

Hinata trailed off, trying to think of the words that weren't coming to mind. It wasn't like… A brief imagine of Sasuke's laughing face flitted across her mind when she closed her eyes in concentration. Her pale eyes snapped opened immediately and the sight gave way to the familiar sight of her room.

"He's the only guy there is," she said quietly, unaware that the words had left her mouth until it was far too late to take them back. Again there was silence, and for a brief moment Hinata wondered if perhaps Tenten hadn't heard her comment. Of course she wasn't that lucky.

"You like someone else, don't you," Tenten demanded in a voice that caused Hinata to hold the phone away from her ear slightly.

"Wait, what? N…n…n…no," Hinata stammered out. She slapped her head lightly as the awful stammering slipped back out, knowing that it only fueled the fire that was Tenten.

"You do," she all but shrieked. "Who is it?"

"N…n…no one," Hinata protested again, sounding even less convincing this time around. She didn't like anyone though, at least she was pretty sure she didn't. Confused seemed like a far more appropriate word to use. It wasn't that she liked someone, it was that she was confused about someone.

"It's the Nara guy isn't it? He's smart. You two would look cute together," Tenten said pleasantly into the phone.

"S…Shikamaru," Hinata managed to choke out in disbelief.

"Yes that's his name."

"No I don't like him like that," Hinata said after she managed to find her voice again. She did not like Shikamaru as more than a friend. Besides Shikamaru was interested in someone else whether he knew it or not.

"Choji," Tenten questioned naming her other friend.

"No," Hinata answered, her tone indicating that she wasn't lying. She was a terrible liar after all and Tenten was well aware of that.

"Hinata they are the only guys you talk to! Please don't tell me it's someone you never talk to," Tenten pleaded. "Oh wait I got it. Sai!"

"S..sai," Hinata spluttered. "No."

"Yeah I am pretty sure he is gay anyway," Tenten muttered over the phone.

"I'm not so sure about that," Hinata commented. Sai had mentioned a girlfriend a few times before though she had never met her. She didn't go to their school apparently. Still she knew Sai had been labeled gay by quite a few people. Personally she didn't mind either way, but she was inclined to believe him about having a girlfriend. Granted he could be lying, but again, it didn't matter to her.

"Okay so spill already. I want a name," Tenten demanded once again.

"Oh… H…Hanabi is calling m…me. I've got to see what she w…wants," Hinata said suddenly. Again she was a terrible liar, but really she didn't want Tenten prying into her head before she figured things out first.

"Hinata I know you are lying. Don't you dare hang up this phone!"

"I'll call you later… Bye Tenten," she said hurriedly before snapping her cell phone shut. A second later the display lit up with Tenten's name as the phone buzzed in her hand. Biting her lower lips nervously, she shoved the phone under her pillow. Out of sight, out of mind. She would just have to remember to call Tenten back later before her friend decided to drive home. Avoiding admitting anything was hard enough over the phone. In person Hinata knew she wouldn't stand a chance.

* * *

Sasuke walked into his second period class with his hands shoved into his pockets, a scowl on features. It was Monday and he was in school. It was all the explanation needed. He glanced up and his gaze fell on Hinata who was already seated with her books out in front of her. He noticed that she had been looking at him, and when his eyes met hers, her face flushed like it always did from behind her hair. This time though she didn't look away.

The corner of his mouth quirked upwards ever so slightly in what was nearly a smirk, the scowl giving way to a softer expression all because of the wallflower hidden behind a wall of hair. He was surprised because the subtle change in his own expression caused a smile to spread across her features. He resisted the urge to quirk the corner of his mouth upwards even further just to see her reaction. Instead he walked past her and to his seat.

Dropping his bag on the floor by his seat he sat down and pulled out his books for class. Glancing up he noticed that Hinata's shoulder were hunched slightly and shaking, her face buried in her hands. It looked like she was crying or… laughing. It took him a minute to realize that the small girl in front of him was doing her best to contain her laughter. Frowning slightly, he thought about asking her what was so funny. On the other hand he didn't want everyone in the class to be witness to their conversation. However, when she turned around and glanced at him, only to cover her mouth with her hand again and turn quickly around, he decided the hell with worrying who was listening.

"What's so funny," he asked, his voice coming out like more of a growl. Actually it sounded like the tone he usually used.

Hinata turned around, the laughter vanishing when she met his intense gaze. Her lips parted slowly, and he realized he was more focused on them then on anything else.

"Y…you…"

The bell rang, cutting off whatever it was that she was going to say. Sasuke glared though it was at the back of her head because she had already turned around to face the front of them room. Annoyed, Sasuke leaned back in his seat and took to glaring at the blackboard in front of him. It was then that he noticed Hinata jotting something down on a piece of paper. She paused, like she was hesitating about writing something, before she took a tighter grip on her pencil and continued writing.

He watched as she put the pencil down and took her piece of paper out of her binder. She slipped the paper into her book and then lifted the book up like she was reading it. The piece of paper still lay against the pages of the book. Sasuke read over the handwriting and the scowl once again returned to his face.

_There's still some paint in your hair. Don't worry it's in everyone else's hair too._

"Yeah everyone except yours," he muttered under his breath.

* * *

**A/N**: Well I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. It was on the longer side and I managed to get it done before within two weeks. Stay tuned for the next chapter! Thanks for reading!


	11. The Scare

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto_

**Author's Note**: Thanks to all of you who reviewed. I am sorry this update took so long. To make it up to you this chapter is extra long. Again this is best viewed in 3/4 view.

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**- The Scare

"I still can't believe you managed to make it through without getting hit once," Ino exclaimed as she flopped down into the empty seat beside her.

Hinata jumped slightly in her own chair, not expecting the blonde's declaration. Actually she didn't even expect Ino to pay her any mind. She could honestly say she was surprised when Ino sat down beside her. Lifting her pale eyes from piece of paper she had been idly drawing different shapes on, she let a small smile tug at the corner of her lips as she glanced at the other girl.

"I mean look at me," Ino said tugging up the sleeve of her long sleeved shirt. "I bruised! Not only that, but there is still paint in my hair!"

Sure enough a purple and blue colored welt had bloomed on Ino's otherwise flawless skin and a green tint on a strand of her long blonde hair. Hinata's eyes widened at the sight of the bruise because it looked rather unpleasant.

"T-that l-looks like it h-hurts," she stammered.

"It does. I still can't believe they just keep popping up. I have never been more bruised in my life."

"Oh come on Ino. It's not that bad," Naruto declared loudly as he came up and leaned on her desk. Hinata momentarily gaped up at him, again startled by the sudden crowd by her desk. So two people weren't exactly a crowd but she was used to being ignored in this class. The fact that people were talking to her, and that other people in the class were actually looking her way, made her head spin.

"Oh really," Ino asked, raising a perfectly arched eyebrow as she glanced at Naruto. "Take that then," she declared as she poked a rather prominent bruise on Naruto's forearm.

"Ino," Naruto yelped as he jumped away from the desk she was seated at. He cradled his arm, a pouting expression on his face. Ino leaned back in her chair and started laughing at him. Naruto's face fell and he turned his pouting gaze on Hinata.

"Hinata, Ino is being mean to me," he whined.

She glanced up at his face, her pale gaze meeting his wide blue eyes, as he did his best to play the victim. Hinata brought her hand up to her mouth and covered it, her shoulders shaking slightly with suppressed laughter. She stole another glance up at him and noticed blue paint in his hair. It was even more obvious that the slight color in Ino's hair. This time her soft laughter escaped past her hand and floated out into the air. Again Naruto's face fell, which caused her to laugh even harder.

"Even Hinata is laughing at me now? You've corrupted her," he declared before pointing an accusatory finger and Ino.

"I did not. She just knows you're being a big baby. Plus have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror while making that face. You'd probably start laughing to if the mirror didn't break first," Ino shot back with a smirk.

"That's it. I don't have to take this. I am sitting next to Hinata. She may be laughing at me but she is still the nice one," Naruto announced as he walked around to the other side and took the empty seat beside her.

"I feel as though Hinata got the crappy end of that decision," Ino commented, earning another soft laugh from Hinata.

She remained silent as the two blondes began to bicker at one another, herself in the center. She sat there quietly, listening and smiling as they went back and forth. Although she wasn't saying a work she still felt like she was part of the conversation going on. She supposed it wasn't much of a conversation. It was actually best to describe it as hurling insults at one another, but that didn't matter to her. Glancing away from Ino and back at Naruto she paused at the thought that entered her distracted mind. All this time Naruto had been right beside her, and not once did she had to remind herself to breathe.

* * *

Ino had linked her arm with Hinata as the two exited their health class. It was all Hinata could do not to trip over her own feet as one of the school's elites drug her along. She could feel the curious stares of other students and the attention made her want to squirm nervously. She wanted to shrink back to being unnoticed but with the bold blonde beside her, it simply wasn't going to happen. Hinata was just about to protest her arm being ripped off when Ino jerked to a stop.

Hinata again nearly tripped over her own feet at the sudden change in momentum. Jerking her head up to see what had caused them to come to such a sudden stop, she saw Shikamaru standing there. He was waiting outside his classroom like he always did to walk with her to their next class. Hinata realized that her friend wasn't looking at her. His eyes were on Ino. Hinata stole a glance up at the friendly girl and noticed that her blue eyes were focused on Shikamaru. The sudden tension that shot through the air was palpable and again she had to fight the urge to squirm. It was obvious there was something there even to her. She glanced back at Shikamaru, unable to read his face to tell what he was thinking.

"Well Hinata I guess I will see you later then," Ino said dropping her arm, though her gaze never left the male standing across from her.

"Okay… bye," she said quietly.

Her words seemed to shake Ino from her frozen position. Ino shook her head, and with a smile that seemed painfully forced, headed off in the other direction without a backwards glance. Shikamaru watched her go, and it wasn't until Hinata took a step in the direction of their class that he made a move to follow her. Hinata normally didn't pry but for some reason her lips parted and she found herself asking Shikamaru a question.

"You a-and Ino," she started before being interrupted.

"I don't know and I want to talk about it," Shikamaru answered with a clipped tone that ended all attempts at conversation on Hinata's part. Instead they walked the rest of the way to class in silence.

When they reached the classroom, Hinata took her usual seat beside Shikamaru and promptly pulled out her things for calculus. With one hand resting on her binder and the other loosely holding onto her pencil, she thought back to the interaction between Shikamaru and Ino. She debated asking Choji about just what was going on there but again that would be prying, and she supposed if Shikamaru wanted to talk about it, he would.

Her thoughts however quickly took another direction as Sasuke walked through the door. Her pale eyes swept to him automatically as if some unknown force had drew them there. She nervously caught her lower lips between her teeth, thankful for the thick strands of hair that protected her from his piercing eyes. Her face heated up like it always did though this time she found herself still watching him, this time as his expression went from a scowl to something softer. Was it for her? She realized her own expression had shifted into a smile and it remained there as he walked past her.

That was when she noticed the blue paint in his hair. It was on the back of his head, a place he most likely hadn't noticed. It was just a small amount, but just enough to be noticeable against his jet black hair. It was all she could do not to laugh out loud. So she clamped a hand over her mouth as her shoulders shook from the effort to remain quiet. Shikamaru even lifted his head from his desk to give her a curious look before shrugging his shoulders and returning to his nap. It was then that Sasuke's voice broke her concentration and she looked back at him.

"Y-you…" She started to explain but the sound of the bell cut her off and she quickly turned around to face the front of the rom. She could still feel Sasuke's eyes on the back of her head and decided she should probably tell him about the paint. She felt a bit bad for laughing at him without an explanation. So she scribbled down a message on a piece of paper and stuck it in the pages of her book to hold up for him. She thought she heard him mutter something in response to her note but it was drowned out by the sound of Asuma's voice.

* * *

Hinata poked at her lunch, her brow furrowed deep in thought as she shut out the bustling cafeteria around her. It had been about three weeks since her paintball adventure, and now she was beginning to realize that there was no going back to the way her life had been at the beginning of the year. Today she had been on her way to lunch when a student she had never met before said hi to her. The student not only knew her name but she had been pleasant as well. This wasn't the first time since paintball that this had happened either. Suddenly people knew her name and for some reason felt compelled to say hello. Somewhere between her newly acquired seat in health between Naruto and Ino, and her seat in English class beside Sasuke, he never did move back to his old seat after their project, people had begun to learn who she was. She had gone from invisible to noticed in a matter of weeks and it was all because Sasuke and his effort to talk to her.

Suddenly she found her name swirling around rumor mill as everyone attempted to speculate just why she was suddenly in with the 'cool' crowd. It was unnerving and she found that she quite missed the relative solitude she had maintained up until now. Still though it was nice to have more friends… that was if she could call them that. She still wasn't quite sure where she stood when it came to them. They all seemed to be her friends, but really she had no idea. She liked to think Sasuke was her friend though if no one else was. He had after all been the one to reach out to her. Now though the problem became juggling the two groups of friends that that had. She was not about to abandon her friends for new ones. She knew what that felt like and she simply didn't have it in her to hurt Shikamaru or Choji like that. Hence the reason she sat at a lunch table with them despite the fact that Ino would invite her over to their table on multiple occasions. Plus Hinata really wasn't interested in sitting with the entire 'cool' crowd. While Naruto, Ino, and Sasuke had all been quite nice to her, she wasn't sure what to make of the others yet.

"What's bothering you," Shikamaru asked as he slouched down into his seat. Hinata glanced up from her tray in time to see Choji take his seat as well and immediately open a bag of potato chips.

"N-nothing. Just t-thinking," she said quietly.

"You are a terrible liar," Choji pointed out through a mouthful of chips.

"I know," she admitted quietly. She wrung her hands together somewhat nervously, debating on telling her friends the direction of her thoughts. Before she could make up her mind about telling them, the loud voice of a certain blonde male caught her attention.

Looking up and past her two friends who were seated across from her she caught sight of Naruto and Sasuke walking their way. Naruto saw her look and grinned. He waved his hand excitedly drawing far too much attention to himself. Of course he always did that but this time the attention was also hers to share. She felt the eyes of some of the other students as she offered a small wave back.

The pair of boys came to a stop at her table and Naruto made himself perfectly comfortable by sliding into the seat beside her. Sasuke naturally did the same and Hinata found herself squeezed between the two of them. Automatically her face heated up and she had to concentrate of breathing to not simply faint right there.

"So I had another awesome idea to follow up the paintball match," Naruto announced loudly. "Since Halloween is coming up I think we should all go to Valley of End this weekend!"

"V-valley of End," she stammered out.

"Yeah they have a haunted hayride, haunted house, and some sort of demon dance thing. You get a ticket and get to do all three of them. It will be awesome!"

"Wait a minute. This coming from the boy who ran out of our fifth grade class screaming because I came in dressed as a ghost for Halloween," Shikamaru asked, eyeing Naruto.

"Well you see," Naruto said starting to rub the back of his head sheepishly. "Wait that was you!?"

"Yes my mom made me wear a costume. Such a drag," Shikamaru muttered. "But you definitely ran out screaming."

"That's because your costume was scary," Naruto protested.

"I threw a white sheet over my head and cut to holes in it because it was the easiest thing to do."

"It was a scary sheet then! Besides that was a long time ago. I don't scream about stuff like that anymore."

An amused sound escaped Sasuke's lips and Hinata tilted her head up to look at him. He caught her eyes, smirked just enough to make her heart skip a beat, it really wasn't fair that he was so beautiful, and shook his head in regards to Naruto's statement.

"Anyway I wanted to invite you to come with us. You can bring Hanabi too," Naruto supplied eagerly. "You guys should come too," he said turning to look at Choji and Shikamaru. "It will be fun."

"That would be fun," Choji supplied through the chips after elbowing Shikamaru in the side to prevent him from saying no. "I say lets go."

"Awesome," Naruto said pumping a fist into the air. "What about you Hinata?"

She turned her pale gaze to Naruto and mentally screamed the word no. The idea of something haunted terrified her. She was liable to faint every time something jumped out at her. It couldn't be good for her heart. So she parted her lips to tell him perhaps some other time. Only that wasn't what came out.

"I guess I will ask Hanabi then."

* * *

It was beginning to really feel like winter was coming. There was an undeniable chill in the air that she could feel even through the jacket she wore. She hunched her shoulders slightly against the chill and shoved her hands into her pockets. Shifting her weight uneasily from one foot to the other she eyed the crowd around her with a wary eye. Crowds normally didn't bother her, but that was because she often faded into the background. However, this time was different. This time people were looking. She knew the real reason they were looking at her was because who she was with, but even that attention was unwanted. She preferred remaining unnoticed and the gazes falling on her made her want to bolt.

It was obvious why the girls were looking. She was standing next to Sasuke. The looks of disdain they cast her after they managed to tear their gazes away from him made her shrink back away from him and closer to Shikamaru. She inched over as if she could hide behind him. It didn't seem to matter though, her position in line between Sasuke and Shikamaru was earning her more attention than she cared for.

She did her best to block it out by looking at the ground and focusing on her sneakers. Even that didn't seem to work, and between the feeling of other people looking at her and the sounds of not so distant screaming, she was already about to jump out of her skin. Again she never should have agreed to this, and again, she had found herself nodding yes despite her inner reservations. Now she was paying for it. Her stomach was practically churning with nerves. She was timid enough as it was and yet she had willingly agreed to come along for this. Now she had to make it through a haunted hayride, house, and dance thing all in the next hour or so. It was terrifying. There was no other word that seemed to fit as well as that one did.

The lined moved forward again, the distance between herself and the ticket booth closing far too fast for her liking. She caught her lower lips between her teeth and bit it slightly, her gaze still locked on the ground. She could do this. None of this was real, well nothing aside from the stares. They were real. Once they got out of this line though, she could go back to being invisible. No one was going to be paying attention to her when they had chainsaw wielding monsters chasing them around.

She swallowed a lump in her throat and briefly thought back to a few hours ago when she had worked up the nerve to check out the website for this place. The first thing that had happened was some bloodied, monstrous face had popped up on her screen and gave her a heart attack. Then the site's eerie music had started, and she was forced to turn off her sound before she could even look at the page. Scrolling through the reviews and other information hadn't made her feel any better either. They could touch you in this place, the actors were allowed to grab you. She would no doubt faint the moment one lay a hand on her. This was going to be absolutely awful. She thought about asking to go wait in the car but Hanabi had drove and she was pretty sure her sister wasn't going to let her get out of this. Besides she seemed distracted talking to Naruto anyway.

In the end the group had consisted of herself, Hanabi, Ino, Naruto, Sasuke, Kiba, Shikamaru, and Choji. Shikamaru looked like he was miserable and he kept stealing glances in Ino's direction. Choji was trying to get Shikamaru to relax a little and have a good time, and Ino was alternating between talking to Kiba and Hanabi, though she too seemed tense and was. It left her standing there quietly with Sasuke, who alternated between looking bored and somewhat amused by either herself or something Naruto said. Of course his amusement was barely more than a slight twitch of his lips but at least it was something. The line moved again and she had to fight the urge to flee. This was adding up to one big disaster.

* * *

Naruto had suggested the hayride first. It was fine by him though he wasn't relishing the idea of sitting in a bunch of itchy hay. He would deal with it. The first person that threw it at him though was going to get hell. The wagon pulled up in front of their group and everyone began to climb on board. Naruto , being Naruto of course, insisted they take the back because it was the scariest place to be. It was amusing to watch how everyone arranged themselves when they sat down. Naruto followed Hanabi around like a lost puppy and immediately proceeded to sit down right beside her. Ino dragged Hinata over and wedged her between herself and Hanabi. Shikamaru ended up beside Naruto and Choji beside him. Kiba ended up between a blonde and a brunette with no regard for his friends. So Sasuke ended up beside Ino.

He listened to her rambling on about being scared to Hinata who was sitting down and shaking like a leaf. She was curled in on herself, her petite frame looking even smaller. He noticed her hands were clenched and her knuckles were white. She was absolutely terrified, and yet she sat there and told Ino that she would be okay. He wondered if he would ever begin to understand her.

The rest of the wagon loaded up, and the tractor pulling it started forward. The talking turned to hushed whispers and people began to cling to one another in anticipation. Sasuke simply peered ahead into the darkness and watched as a worn gate slowly swung open, the hinges groaning as they drove past it. It groaned again as the gate swung shut and when he heard the heavy click as it shut completely, he knew the fun had just begun. A siren suddenly rang through the darkness and faded into a police broadcast on escaped patients from the criminally insane ward of Valley Mental Hospital. The sound faded away and for a moment it was quiet. Then out of nowhere an actor threw himself at the back of the wagon, crazed laughter ringing from his mouth as he attempted to climb on the back of the wagon near where Naruto was.

Now Sasuke had been friends with Naruto for more years than he cared to remember, but in all that time, Sasuke had never once heard him scream quite like he did in that moment. Sure Naruto had screamed before, he was a complete baby about anything supernatural, but this was so high pitched that for a moment Sasuke hadn't thought it was him. But sure enough the high-pitched scream came from no one other than Naruto, who proceeded to nearly squish Hinata's sister as he threw himself on top of her. Hanabi was screaming too, only her scream, along with mostly everyone else's had been drowned out by Naruto's.

The actor grabbed onto the side of the wagon and hoisted himself up, sending Hanabi and Naruto both crawling away towards the center of the wagon in a tangle of limbs. Choji and Shikamaru both seemed more amused by this than scared by the actor. Choji was openly laughing at the two and offering Shikamaru some of the kettle corn he had just bought. With Naruto and Hanabi gone, the actor pulled himself up into the wagon and began to crawl after them. He stopped though in front of Ino and Hinata only to reach out for Ino.

Ino screamed and ducked under his arm, scurrying directly across the wagon to the first sign of safety that presented itself between Choji and Shikamaru. Throwing herself between the two of them she clutched onto Choji's arm only to scream again as another actor popped out. His gaze shifted back to Hinata who was now completely alone, and the sole focus of the first actor's attention. He noticed that behind the thick strands of indigo hair she looked even paler than she normally did. Despite the fact that she had yet to move or scream she was still shaking. She looked like she was going to pass out. Her eyes were squeezed shut as she attempted to block out the actor. She turned her head to the side then to look away. Her wide eyes, full of terror met his own, calm and controlled. For a brief second their eyes held and then suddenly she launched herself into his arms. He had no choice but to fold them around her.

Her warm breath tickled his bare skin as she curled herself into him. Her head was pressed against his shoulder, her mouth at the base of his neck. Every time she took a breath the warmth of it would caress his skin and cause his body to tense in reaction. She was small against him, his arms easily entwining themselves around her. Even still she was incredibly soft and warm. Unconsciously he brought her closer to him. She didn't seem to mind though. In fact if anything she pressed closer to him

* * *

Hinata couldn't breathe. That wasn't true. She could breathe, it was just that her breathing was quick and shallow, her heart racing a mile a minute. She jumped when the gate had opened for crying out loud. Ino had laughed at her too for jumping out of her skin. She felt foolish but that paled in comparison to the terror she felt. Her pale eyes darted wildly back and forth in the darkness as she tried to spot things trying to scare her. Her chest felt tight from the panic that was bubbling up within her. So when the first actor came out of nowhere and launched himself up onto the wagon while maniacally laughing, she froze. Everyone else darted away and there she was too scared to even move.

It was as if she was watching herself through a looking glass. Every instinct told her to flee from the actor with the stage makeup that made him look deformed. Yet despite this instinct she couldn't bring herself to move. She was pretty certain at that point she had stopped breathing as well. The pressure in her chest seemed to build up even more rapidly as she squeezed her eyes shut and willed the source of her fright to go away. She knew however, that even with his eyes closed, he was still there and watching her. She turned her head to the side and let her eyes open up, still forgetting how to breathe. She saw Sasuke then, watching her and looking as calm as ever. Apparently none of this affected him. She wasn't sure what possessed her to do what she did next but perhaps it was because he represented the closest thing to safety.

When the actor made his move to lean in towards her, she threw herself at Sasuke. The way her head collided with his shoulder was anything but graceful, but when his arms wrapped themselves around her, she felt safe. She remembered to breathe then and gasped for air. She clung to him, her hands fisted in his t-shirt as she squeezed her eyes shut tight and waited for the nightmare to be over. She was too scared to even care about the intimate position she was now in.

She took steady breaths, taking in the familiar scent of Sasuke like a calming drug. His body was hard but surprisingly warm and she snuggled closer. Around her she could still hear the other people on the wagon screaming but Sasuke didn't move a muscle. He didn't jump even when the chainsaw wielders came barreling out and started smashing their chainsaws into the wagon. He remained completely unmoved and she was grateful. Wrapped protectively in his arms she found it easier to breathe and by the end of the ride she was peeking out from behind her curtain of bangs and managing to laugh at the noises that escaped from Naruto every time something popped out at him. In fact by the time the wagon pulled to a stop she would even go as far as to say she was enjoying herself. That was however when reality came back to her and she realized she was clinging to Sasuke still.

The look Naruto was giving the two of them indicated that he had noticed and Hinata sat up abruptly, her face going from ghostly pale to bright red in record time. Sasuke's arms slipped from around her and she felt him shift behind her. She turned slightly to see him stand and before she could follow suit, a hand was offered to her. Somewhat nervously she grasped his hand, and a slight gasp escaped her lips as he lifted her up to her feet. She steadied herself and brushed some of the hay from her clothes. She glanced up at Sasuke and noticed him doing the same. She also noticed a lone strand of hay that had made its way into his hair. Sheepishly she stood on her tip toes and reached up to tug the piece from his hair. She held it up for him to see and a smirk crossed his otherwise impassive features. He reached forward and tugged a strand out of her hair as well. She look at him with her lips parted slightly in slight awe and he shook his head at her. With another smirk that made her already rapidly beating heart flutter, he put his hand on her lower arm and steered her out of the wagon.

* * *

As much as he didn't want to admit it, he felt colder without her pressed against him. As they waited in line to get into the haunted house, he could feel the sudden loss of warmth. He noticed, with some pleasure, that she had stayed close to his side since they had gotten off the wagon. She didn't seem to be willing to move too far away from him. Still the fact that she was so close kept forcing him to think about reaching out and simply pulling her in towards him again, just so he could feel her against him again. The feeling left him frustrated like some hormone driven teen with only one agenda. He was a teenage male but he liked to consider himself past all of that. Ignoring the nagging feeling to pull her close, he instead focused on the line as they moved closer to the front.

The attendant collecting tickets only let part of their group through. Naruto and Hanabi walked in first, followed by Hinata and himself when the attendant held up the line despite Ino's protest. Immediately Naruto and Hanabi set forward, Hanabi tormenting Naruto by making him jump with every other step. The pair seemed to be swallowed up by the darkness of the building and soon enough Sasuke couldn't even see them ahead of him. That was then he felt a familiar warmth pressed up against his back as Hinata clutched his shirt and pressed her cheek against his back. The smirk that slid its way across his features was lost to everyone in the dark, but he felt it and it made him almost nervous. She was getting to him.

Moving forward, he made sure to keep his pace slow as to not trip over anything in the dark. Winding his way down a long dark hall, he could hear the shouts and screams not too far from them. Behind him, a nervous Hinata began to quiver. She stayed with him though. Part of his thought her fear was foolish, but then again this was something that obviously terrified her, and she was facing it. Even if it was at the cost of his shirt, he was rather certain her hands were going to leave permanent wrinkles, it was rather admirable.

They slipped into the first room and were greeted by a mad cook and brandishing a butchers knife. A carved up 'corpse' lay across the table and 'blood' was spattered about the room. He felt Hinata shudder behind him as she pressed herself closer to his back and turned her head away from the grisly scene. Sasuke kept moving forward but the cook went around behind them and tugged at a strand of Hinata's hair, informing them how tasty of a meal she would make. He heard her startled 'eep' as she squirmed away from the cook and came around in front of him to hide away from the other guy. Sasuke turned around, his own onyx eyes narrowed in a threatening manner at the cook. With 'back the hell off' written all over his face, the actor actually shrank back away from the pair. Satisfied, Sasuke turned around only to find Hinata beaming up at him, clearly glad that he had made the actor get lost. He found the threatening look fading quickly from his face as it was replaced by something softer. Before he let it go further he stepped back around and in front of her set to lead the way through the rest of the haunted house.

The sound of loud cackling and a chanted spell actually caused Sasuke to tense. He was hoping he was wrong, but when they stepped into yet another room, it was filled with witches. Now the idea of witches wasn't what scared him. None of this 'haunted' stuff did, but when said witches turned their eyes on him, he knew he was in for it. It was like watching a thirsty man look at a glass of water. He absolutely hated fan girls, and if the cackles that had changed into delighted giggles were any indication, than these witches were just the sort. The worst part about it was that while this place allowed the actors to touch the guests. There was a strict policy about the guests touching the actors. Not that he planned on hitting fan girls, it was simply the fact that he now even lacked the ability to pry them off of him. He hadn't realized he had actually come to a stop until Hinata leaned her head around and blinked up at him.

"W-wh-what's wrong," she whispered before stealing a nervous glance at the room in front of him.

"Fan girls," Sasuke mumbled back as the chorus of voices began calling him over to them. He visibly winced and was debating on just pushing through the room as quickly as he could when he felt a small hand slide into his own. Looking down at his hand, he followed the slender arm up to a shoulder and then Hinata's face. Behind her hair, her face was set in a determined expression. She drew in a shaky breath and to his surprise, stepped in front of him. In a matter of a moment she placed her fear second to his own and began to bravely start forward. Though he imagined an intimidating face from Hinata would resemble an angry kitten, the fan girls kept their distance. Perhaps it was her hand in his that kept them at bay or that fact that he suddenly couldn't take his eyes off her, wondering if he was getting in over his head.

* * *

Ino was more than a little annoyed when the attendant cut her off from Sasuke, Naruto, Hanabi, and Hinata. Out of the group she had come with they were the four she talked to. Granted she talked to Kiba as well but he was too busy still chatting it up with the girls from the hayride. She didn't want to think about the hayride either. She had made a complete fool of herself by throwing herself between Shikamaru and Choji. Of all the things she could have done she had to have done that. Still she couldn't deny the comforting feeling she had felt sandwiched between the two of them nor could she deny the pleasant surprise of the subtle definition of muscle that she had felt under Shikamaru's jacket. Since when did Shikamaru work out? For a guy who was asleep in school for more time than he was awake, it was hard to believe that he wasn't all soft. She had to resist the urge not to wrap her hand around his bicep and squeeze it just to really make sure she wasn't imagining it.

She shook her head, scattering her dangerous thoughts. With an annoyed look clear on her face, she waited for the attendant to let them by. After what seemed like ages, though in reality it was only about a minute, the attendant let them through. Ino pushed her way in only to come to a stop and let Shikamaru and Choji move past her. There was no way she was about to go first. Falling into place behind them and in front of Kiba she put on a brave face and moved down the darkened hallway.

Three rooms in and she was wishing she had an arm to cling to. Her blue eyes were darting around frantically and she was ready to jump out of her skin. She was half-tempted to turn around and give Kiba a mouthful for being unable to keep it in his pants just once. She could use him right now. Folding her arms over her chest and tossing her head slightly so that her bangs fell away from her eyes, she walked forward into the next room only to be confronted by a 'knife' wielding actor who took to playing with her ponytail. He draped his arm around her and drug his knife against her throat, causing her to squirm against him. Laughing in her ear, he didn't let her go instead holding onto her as the rest of her group moved on. Kiba laughed at her as he walked by, but as soon as he and his two newest friends vanished, Ino realized it was anything but funny.

She was alone in a dark room with some guy she didn't know, and she wasn't feeling very comfortable about it. Her eyes widened slightly as she felt his hand slide down her leg. Her own hand reflexively closed over his to pull it away from her. She wanted away from this guy and out of this room now. Panic that hadn't been there moments ago bubbled up in the back of her throat. She could feel a scream rising up but she knew a scream would mean nothing in a haunted house. Still it was about to tear its way from her throat when suddenly she wasn't being held in place anymore. The actor had stepped away and sucked in a ragged and relieved breath. Her blue eyes looked up and to her surprise a pissed off looking Shikamaru was standing there with his arms folded over his chest. His eyes were narrowed in the direction of the actor. She was speechless until his eyes shifted towards her.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," she said stepping forwards towards her. He nodded and turned around, leaving her to stare at his back as they walked out of the room. Over and over her mind reminded her that for some reason he had come back for her.

* * *

The music was loud and the lights were an array of color flashing in the make-shift club setting that had been set up. There were black lights and a dance floor set up with people scattered about, some dancing and others watching. Currently she was one of the people watching. She was standing near one of the walls, watching through the flashing lights as the people moved around the building. The people working there had neon paint on their faces in ghoulish designs. The paint glowed in the black light and the rest of their bodies and clothes were also splattered with paint. The girls had neon bands in their hair and two of them were up dancing on individual platforms.

She nervously wrung her hands together in front of her as she felt completely out of place. This was not her scene nor would it ever be. She felt nervous though admittedly she was nowhere near as panicked as she had been when she was on the hayride and in the house. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Naruto dragging Hanabi to the dance floor. Her sister was laughing and attempting to pull away but Naruto wouldn't have any of it. Much to her surprise Ino was with Shikamaru and Choji, chatting away with the latter about something. Of course Kiba was dancing with one of the paint covered girls, which once again left her standing there with Sasuke.

He hadn't said anything since they had gotten out of the haunted house and she wondered if he was annoyed at her for clinging to him like a scared little girl. She supposed she couldn't blame him. She stole a glance at him from the corner of her eye but he didn't seem annoyed, just impassive like he usually appeared. She opened her mouth to say something, something like an apology for how she had acted earlier and a thanks for how he had been rather kind to her. Her words died at her lips though. She wasn't sure how to talk to Sasuke or even if he wanted her to. No that wasn't it. Well it was part of it, but the underlying fact of the matter was that she was afraid. She was always afraid. She mentally berated herself and all of the irrational fears that she had when Sasuke's voice cut into her inner tirade.

"Do you want to dance?"

"W-what," she sputtered out.

"Do. You. Want. To. Dance," he said practically spelling it out for her.

"I can't," she blurted out, to which he gave her a disbelieving look.

"I've seen you dance," he pointed out.

"Not w-with someone," she said playing with her hands again.

"It's not hard," he said reaching out a hand towards her.

She eyed his hand for a moment, unsure of what she wanted to do. She glanced at his face, which while still impassive had a patient look to it. She looked back to his hand and after one last moment of hesitation, she slipped her hand into his. She felt like she was falling.

* * *

**A/N**: So the next chapter will be the much anticipated makeover chapter. So anticipate more fluff and the onset of drama. Sakura will come back into the picture and things will start to be shaken up. I realized the other day while writing that I have kept you all waiting for the last ten chapters for things to pick up. I hope I haven't been disappointing any of you. Thanks again for reading and hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	12. The Dress

_Disclaimer: I own nothing_

**Author's Note**: As always thanks to all of you who reviews. Reviews are awesome motivation. Also while on the subject of reviews I also wanted to thank you all for making this my most reviewed story yet. Now on with the chapter.

* * *

**Chapter Twelve- The Dress**

The days that followed the haunted house brought back the familiar routine of school and football. With the end of the season rapidly approaching, his spare time dwindled down to nearly nonexistent. Each day became a blur of repetition as if he had been thrust back in time to his first three years of high school. The process was exactly the same only this time there was no Sakura demanding those few moments he did get to himself. This time around there was also a breath of fresh air. This time Hinata was in the picture.

They didn't see each other outside of school and even their interactions within the school's doors were brief. However, for two people who appreciated their solitude, the smallest of exchanges spoke volumes. When she passed him in the hallway and looked up from the ground only to offer a shy smile, it stirred something within him. Each small gesture built upon the last, a small wave at the end of the day, a whispered good luck on game days, and the way her gaze sought him out when he entered a room. All of these things seemed insignificant at a glance, but the depth of their meaning was not lost to him.

Their interactions were always private, shared between the two of them alone. Her wave wouldn't come if others were looking, and to most they were still strangers. Perhaps it was an unwillingness on her part as well as his own to have these small exchanges labeled by the rest of the student body. She wasn't ready yet to be thrown to the ruthless student body and he was in no hurry to push her. So this went on, each small interaction slowly building up a strange relationship as the days rolled by one after the next.

* * *

Sasuke was seated on a wooden bench, staring at the locker in front of him. He had already changed out of his uniform and was waiting for the rest of his team to catch up. Kiba was still in a towel and ever mature Naruto was parading around in his boxers making mock poses of the Heisman trophy. It was amazing what a win could to lift the spirits of a physically spent team. The game had taken all of their effort and each one of them was going to be feeling it in the morning. It was a win though and it secured their undefeated season.

Even Sasuke was a little pleased about that. Though he didn't quite express it the way the rest of his team did, he was proud of the accomplishment. In fact a smirk had been plastered on his face despite the fact he felt like he had been run over by a bus. Their defensive secondary had been littered with rather large players. Sasuke marveled that his body was still working properly. Now of course it was on to playoffs, but for the moment they came out on top. They were the unbeaten ones, and the ones that got to walk away with the glory.

"Come on Sasuke we won," Naruto shouted as he jumped up onto the bench Sasuke was sitting on to elicit cheers from the rest of the team.

"Dobe. You're going to hurt yourself," Sasuke commented, shaking his head at his friend.

"Come on bastard lighten up would you," Naruto asked as he jumped down from the bench.

"Cut him a break Naruto he hasn't been getting any since Sakura broke up with him," Kiba said with a taunting grin.

Sasuke had half a mind to turn around and tell Kiba to shut the hell up, but instead he chose not to even acknowledge him. He simply remained facing towards the locker doing his best to ignore the urge to punch Kiba in his big mouth.

"Then again maybe he is getting some. You know I didn't think Hinata was your type, but why else would you still have her walking around in those bags she wears? She sure doesn't make a lasting impression in those. What's wrong Uchiha, worried I might want a little taste myself? I bet she's real nice in the sack."

Before Sasuke's mind caught up with his body, he had shot to his feet and let his right fist connect with Kiba's face. It was with quite a bit of satisfaction that he saw Kiba spin off the bench he was sitting on and hit the floor. Sasuke made a move to let him have it again, but suddenly Naruto was between him and Kiba.

"Knock it off," Naruto shouted. He turned towards Sasuke and shoved him in the chest, causing him to take a step backwards. "What the hell Sasuke? Don't pull this crap with playoffs right around the corner. Do you want to get thrown off the team?"

"Kiba," Naruto said turning back towards Kiba who was now just getting off the floor and wiping away blood from his lip. "If Sasuke hadn't hit you I probably would have. You freaking deserved that. Now both of you cool off or I'll report you to Iruka myself. This team doesn't need your crap."

Sometimes, these times were few and far between and never would Sasuke admit to any of them, he was impressed by the way Naruto handled things. For a general goof who was so rarely taken seriously, he had moments like this when he commanded attention. There were times when he handled a situation in a way far more capable than Sasuke expected him to. This was one of those times, and as a result Sasuke actually listened. He stalked off, leaving his teammates to deal with Kiba. He decided to try and cool down as well as figure out just what it was that caused his temper to flare so quickly.

* * *

"Kiba's right," Sasuke admitted as he climbed into his car with Naruto. The bus had just dropped them off at the school and now all that was left to do was get home for the night.

"Right about what," Naruto asked as he leaned his head back against the car seat. It was obvious that Naruto was wiped out from the game.

"Hinata," Sasuke said before adding on quickly, "The clothes I mean."

"Huh?"

"Her clothes, they do nothing for her. No one notices her. How I am supposed to turn her into a prom queen when she looks the way she does," Sasuke asked running a frustrated hand through his hair. Really it was the first time he had considered the way Hinata looked to be a problem, and it was only because of Kiba. Still after what Kiba said, Sasuke kept coming back to the fact that if he was going to win this bet, changes needed to be made. Kiba always had a way of reminding him about that stupid bet he had made. Half the time he was around Hinata the bet never crossed his mind, at the moment though it was the center focus.

"So change her clothes," Naruto offered in way of obvious advice. "Hey I know. Bring her to the party I am having tomorrow to celebrate our win."

"You're having a party?"

"I am now. I was planning on it because Jairaiya is out of town this weekend but I didn't want to jinx our win by announcing a party before the game was over," Naruto explained causing Sasuke to shake his head.

"Anyway I would have invited her and Hanabi anyway, but you should show up with her on your arm looking amazing. I mean practically half the school will be there to see it."

"One small problem," Sasuke commented dryly.

"What?"

"How am I supposed to get her looking amazing? Do you think she can even look amazing?"

"She's pretty," Naruto insisted. "She just hides it, and how about 'What not to Wear?'"

"Really dobe?"

"What? I am trying here."

"Wait I have an idea," Sasuke said pulling out his phone before sending out two text messages.

* * *

_To: Hinata_

_From: Sasuke _

_Are you free tomorrow night?_

* * *

_To: Ino_

_From: Sasuke_

_I need a favor._

* * *

It was just after ten in the morning. It was Saturday so Hinata had slept. For her sleeping in had consisted of not rolling out of bed until just before nine. She might have slept later but she was a morning person. That coupled with the fact that she was dreading tonight kept her from lingering between her sheets for too long. It was only ten and her stomach was already churning from anxiety. Why oh why did she agree to this? Lately she was beginning to think of herself as a masochist. She was constantly putting herself into these situations that caused her to be nearly sick from her nerves.

Hinata was seated at the table across from Hanabi, both of the working on bowls of cereal in a companionable silence. Hanabi had her phone flipped open beside her, texting with one hand, her spoon in the other. Hinata's own phone was still upstairs somewhere as she wasn't really expecting to hear from anyone. No longer interested in her cereal, Hinata stood and carried her bowl over to the sink. Setting it down in the sink, she started slightly when the chime of the doorbell rang through the house.

Hinata turned to look at Hanabi, who raised an arched brow in a questioning manner as she shrugged her shoulders. Obviously her sister wasn't excepting anyone. She wasn't expecting anyone either, and her father was gone for the weekend so it wasn't anyone for him. Perhaps it was some sort of salesperson. Hinata glanced down at herself and winced. She was still dressed in her pajamas which consisted of an oversized t-shirt and a pair of loose sweatpants. Glancing over at Hanabi revealed that her sister was still in her pajamas too. So with a defeated sigh, Hinata headed for the front door.

Pausing to peer through the peep hole on the door, she had to blink several times and look through it again to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Still even after looking a second time, the sight of Ino standing there with an impatient hand on her hip still remained. Hinata fumbled with the lock on the door for a moment before swinging it open.

Ino flashed her a wide smile before stepping past her and into the house. Hinata blinked back at her, a look of mild confusion clear on her face. She closed the door, collecting her thoughts before turning around to face Ino, who was looking at her with a look that Hinata wasn't sure she was comfortable with. The blonde looked, for lack of a better word, devious, and that made Hinata nervous.

"Ino w-what are you doing here," Hinata asked again glancing at the blonde, who, unlike herself, looked perfectly ready to take on the day.

"I'm here to get you ready for the party," Ino chirped back in a pleasant tone.

Hinata stared at the other girl wide-eyed. The fact was that the party was the last thing she wanted to think about. Not only that but she still wasn't sure if she was actually going to go. She had been hoping to fake an illness or something along those lines. All of that aside though, there was still one other problem with Ino's statement.

"Ino it's only ten," Hinata pointed out quietly. "The p-party doesn't start until e-eight."

By now Hanabi had made her way out of the kitchen and was lounging against the door frame watching the two of them with an amused grin on her face.

"I know that but really I have a lot of work to do before then," Ino said flipping a strand of blonde hair behind her head.

From her place against the doorframe Hanabi burst out into laughter. Hinata turned red from embarrassment and glanced down at herself again. She supposed Ino was… right. As much as she didn't want to admit it she needed a lot of work. She just wasn't sure she was ready. Apparently though Ino wasn't giving her a choice.

"You," Ino said pointing at Hanabi. "Get Dressed. You are helping me with this."

"And you," Ino said, turning back to Hinata. "You get dressed too. We have some shopping to do."

Hinata cringed at the way her eyes lit up when she said that dreaded word. Hinata hated shopping and somehow she imagined shopping with Ino would be more like a torture session than fun. She liked Ino but it was very clear the two of them had very different ideas about clothes. Before she could say anything Ino grabbed her shoulders, spun her around to face the stairs, a literally shoved her forward.

* * *

Hinata wasn't very big on shopping. The clothes she wore had been the same clothes she had been wearing since the beginning of high school. Her clothes were shapeless and did little to draw attention to her. It was the way she preferred it and as a result very rarely did she had to go out and buy new things. She didn't care what was trendy or in style. She simply wore the things that made her feel safe.

For those reasons shopping with Ino and Hanabi was like entering an alternate universe. Shopping with them meant she was thrust out of her element and into someplace foreign. So when they entered the first upscale, Ino drug her straight to where the dresses were. Without so much as a word, Ino began to pull dresses Hinata couldn't even begin to imagine herself in off the racks. Hanabi offered her own input, agreeing or disagreeing with some of Ino's choices. Hinata was thankful for her sister's input as it resulted in Ino putting away some of her more scandalous choices.

All the while Hinata stood there watching with mild disbelief. Neither her sister nor Ino bothered for her opinion, both well aware of the fact that she wasn't going to particularly like anything they picked out. Wringing her hands together nervously, she swallowed a lump in her throat and wordlessly followed the two girls who were both clearly in their element.

By the time they had finished tearing through the racks, finding several choices for themselves as well, Ino placed four dresses in her hand with a pleasant smile that Hinata would have liked to mirror if she wasn't feeling so sick to her stomach. With not-so-gentle prodding from Hanabi and Ino she found herself in a dressing room staring at the dresses hanging against the wall. A loud knock on her door caused her to jump backwards.

"We aren't trying anything on until we see you try on all of yours," Ino yelled from the other side of the door.

"You have to show us all of them," Hanabi piped in.

"O-okay," Hinata stammered before turning back to the dresses still wishing they would magically disappear.

* * *

The first dress she ended up in was an Alexander Wang corset dress. The dress had a tan colored bodice and grey skirt and sleeves. Looking at herself in the mirror, her eyes widened. She was practically spilling out of the top of the dress. While she liked the rather soft colors of the dress, and the fact that it went to her knees, she wasn't so sure about the top. She had never worn something that showed so much of her 'assets'. The bodice was fitted revealing curves she had tried to hide for years. Biting her lower lip, she opened the door and nervously poked her head outside.

"Come out where we can see you," Ino demanded.

Hinata looked around to make sure no one else was in the room and with one last breath stepped out of her dressing room.

"Holy hell Hinata. You've got boobs," Ino exclaimed.

Hanabi started to laugh as Hinata turned bright red. She turned to bolt back to the dressing room only to be stopped by her sister. She shot Hanabi her best attempt at a glare to which her sister shook her head.

"Okay seriously though, Hinata you have some serious curves. Who knew all that was hiding under those awful sweatshirts of yours," Ino commented as she took to walking around Hinata and studying her.

"As cute as that is, it isn't much of a party dress. Not bold enough," Ino muttered.

"I agree more dinner date material," Hanabi commented.

"You're right. Still it seems too perfect to pass up," Ino muttered.

"And that is why I brought this," Hanabi said flashing one of their father's credit cards. "We'll get this dress and one for the party," Hanabi said happily.

"You are a girl after my own heart," Ino said with a smile.

"Hanabi," Hinata started only to be cut off by her younger sister.

"Please we both know he won't notice. You are getting that dress," Hanabi said spinning her sister around and giving her a shove back towards the dressing room.

"I want to see more skin," Ino called to which both girls started laughing and Hinata turned bright red. She was outnumbered.

The next dress was a Herve Leger banded stretch dress in black. It had thick straps and a deep V-neck that once again caused her to practically spill out of the top. The dress had a wide Empire waist design and a back zipper. This dress also went to her knees. The most noticeable difference for Hinata at least was the fact that this dress felt like it was painted on. It hugged her body showing off an hour glass shape. She could honestly say she liked this dress even less than the last one.

With a dreadful feeling she repeated the same process of peeking out of the dressing room and making sure no one was around before stepping out for Hanabi and Ino to see. Ino and Hanabi both smiled when they saw her and again took to carefully studying the dress she wore.

"Again with the boobs," Ino commented with a smirk. Instinctively Hinata crossed her arms over her chest in an attempt to cover herself. The action only made things worse and with a defeated sigh she dropped her arms.

"Well I love the front, hate the back. The back zipper kind of ruins the dress for me. Plus it's a bit long for a party dress," Ino announced.

"Agreed," Hanabi said. "Next."

Back in the dressing room Hinata put on the next dress. This dress was a French Connection ruched cotton minidress that was black in color. Standing in front of the mirror Hinata decided that this was by far the dress she hated the most. While she wasn't spilling out of this dress, the bottom was at the middle of her thighs. She wasn't sure whether to pull the dress up or down. Again the dress was fitted to her body, showing off the feminine curves. Yet in this dress she didn't even want to step outside. While she wasn't into dresses to begin with, this one was not her in the slightest. It was like it was erasing who she was.

Very reluctantly she came out of her dressing room to show her sister and Ino. Hanabi noticeably gaped while Ino's eyes widened. For a moment neither said anything before Ino broke the silence.

"Hinata you are hot," Ino said with a laugh.

Hinata turned bright red and fought the urge to pull the dress down further over her thighs.

"I don't l-like this one at all," she stammered out.

For a moment Ino's shopping-induced high melted away and a sympathetic look crossed over her pretty face. She walked around Hinata for a moment, taking in the dress, before coming back around to stand in front of her.

"You are right. This one won't work. If Sasuke sees you in that you might not make it to the party."

As the comment sunk in, Hinata's vision began to swim. She teetered dangerously and would have fallen if not for Hanabi suddenly supporting her. Her sister comfortingly pated her shoulder before turning towards Ino.

"Way to go. You nearly made her faint."

"Well it's the tru…"

"Don't say it," Hanabi said cutting off Ino's statement.

Hinata managed to steady herself after several deep breaths. After assuring Ino and Hanabi she was alright, she trudged back into the dressing room in order to try on the last dress. Admittedly she had been avoiding this dress because of its color. It was red and as a result she had shied away from the bold color. Now though it was all that stood between her and getting back into her comfortable clothes.

Quickly she slipped into the Nanette Lepore ruched bodice dress. The dress fell to a point several inches above her knee. It had a sweetheart neckline with a two-button closure strap at the back of the bustline. The straps of the dress were about an inch wide and while she was not spilling out of the dress, it still showed a considerable amount of cleavage. Still Hinata had to admit it wasn't tasteless like it had been with the second dress. The dress was backless to just above the small of her back aside from the two-button closure strap that went across just below her shoulder blades. While it was more form fitted than what she was used to, it wasn't painted on like the others had been and as a result it was quite flattering on her.

After a moment she stepped out of the dressing room. She glanced from Ino to Hanabi, who were both speechless at the moment. It was actually Hanabi who spoke first this time.

"It's like perfect. You look amazing," she said coming closer to get a better look.

"Hanabi is right. This dress is beyond perfect for you. You are going to blow everyone away in this," Ino said finally forming sentences. "You look hot and in the non-trashy way."

Hanabi giggled and Hinata unsurprisingly blushed. As she turned back to the dressing room to change back into her clothes a little thought nagged her in the back of her mind. She couldn't help but wonder is Sasuke would think the same thing.

* * *

By the time they were finished shopping Hinata had also been forced into a pair of red heels to go with her dress. The shoes were more like heeled sandals with three thick straps, two around her instep and one around her ankle. The straps had buckles giving the shoes a more modern look. They also gave her about four extra inches of height. Never in her life had she felt so tall. A trade off was the fact that she had feared she was going to break her ankle in them.

Hanabi and Ino had also both gotten dresses of the party. Hanabi had ended up with a Sue Wong crochet trim dress. The dress was a coral spaghetti strap dress that reached a few inches above her knees. The dress had intricate crocheted lace and a bubble-hem skirt. In Hinata's opinion her sister looked pretty in the dress. It gave her an almost delicate quality and seemed to soften her quite a bit.

Ino ended up Selena halter dress. The dress was a dark purple color with a halter back that left her back bare to a point just below her shoulder blades. The dress had a draped cowl neck and stopped at the middle of her thighs. Ino looked absolutely gorgeous in the dress. It emphasized her figure, which while curvy was not nearly so curvy as Hinata's. Hinata vaguely wondered if the fact that her dress was red would even make a difference when she stood by Ino and Hanabi. Both of them were so beautiful that it made her self-conscious. Next to those two she doubted someone like Sasuke would even notice her.

* * *

When they had gotten back from the store, Ino had grabbed a rather large bag out of her car and brought it inside with her. With Hanabi's help the two had also brought a chair upstairs and placed it in the middle of bathroom. Hinata was currently eyeing the chair in a worried manner. The dress shopping had left her uncomfortable as it was, and now she was to hand her hair and face over to Ino for the rest of her makeover. Inwardly she panicked and thought making a run for it. Before she could get her feet to move, Ino pointed at her and then the chair.

"Sit," the blonde ordered as she spread her things out on the counter.

After one more debate about running away, Hinata forced herself to sit in the chair. For the second time that day Hanabi comfortingly patted her shoulder, a subtle reassurance that everything was going to be alright. Hanabi then turned and began to consult with Ino. Their voices were hushed, their plans for her makeover a secret to her alone.

"Alright first thing is first. You have to take your hair down," Ino said as she leaned back against the counter and waited for Hinata to pull out her bun.

Hinata reached up and tugged her ponytail holder, feeling slightly self conscious as she did so. No one saw her with her hair down. Well she supposed Hanabi had once or twice but it had been briefly. Her indigo hair cascaded downward, brushing the small of her back in slight waves left behind from the bun she had it in.

"Wow you have a lot of hair," Ino said picking up a pair of scissors and tapping them in her hand. "How are you with nails," she asked turning to Hanabi. Hanabi grinned and lifted her hand, showing off perfectly groomed nails.

"I'd say passable."

"Okay you take the nails, I've got the hair," Ino said grabbing a brush off the counter.

* * *

Hanabi was currently working on her hands while Ino was chatting away as she cut away hair. With each passing moment Hinata was becoming more nervous given the amount of hair on the bathroom floor, but Ino kept reassuring her that she wasn't taking off much length.

"I just got rid of all the dead ends and now I am putting in some layers. It looks like more than it is," she explained cutting away some more hair. "Hey Hanabi I have a question for you."

"Hm," Hanabi said not glancing up from Hinata's nails. Her sister needed quite a bit of work considering she had never done them in her life.

"How do you keep someone from wearing their hair in their face all the time?"

"I don't know," Hanabi said looking up and raising a finely arched brow in a curious manner.

"Oh its easy, you just give them bangs," Ino chirped as she quickly snipped the length off of the front pieces of Hinata's hair.

Hinata yelped in surprise and Ino began to laugh, as she began to style the newly cut bangs with a flourish. Hinata squeezed her eyes shut and said nothing else, not daring to look. She didn't want to see what her hair looked like. She was too terrified.

* * *

In the end Ino decided not to let her look at her hair. She determined that Hinata didn't get to see until they had completely finished with her. After Ino had finished cutting her hair and Hanabi had finished with her nails, the two girls switched to different jobs. Hanabi got the task of straightening the kinks out of her hair while Ino got the task of makeup. Well there was one more thing before makeup.

"Hinata's eyebrows, I would like to introduce you to tweezers. Tweezers I would like you to meet a complete disaster," Ino said brandishing the small, yet painful tool.

"Ino be nice," Hanabi chided as Hinata tried to squirm away.

"Okay fine they aren't a complete disaster but they can use some work, and stop squirming," she snapped as she placed a firm hand on Hinata's shoulder to keep her in place.

In the end Hinata had been plucked, prodded, and forced into clothes that made her feel uncomfortable. The last nine hours had turned into one of the longest days of her life. The highlight had been the hour they had all gotten lunch and sat around talking about nothing of importance. Now though it was just after seven o'clock and her transformation was complete. She was in her dress with both her hair and makeup done. She still hadn't seen herself though. Hanabi and Ino were both gushing though.

The two had left her sitting in her room while they changed into their dresses and got ready for the party. They had made her promise she wouldn't peek because they both wanted to see her reaction. She was half-tempted to look anyway but she was too nice for that and they both seemed so excited. As a result she sat on her bed and twiddled her thumbs, butterflies creeping into her stomach. She glanced at the clock on her wall. Sasuke was going to be here any minute now and she couldn't help but wonder what he would think.

She glanced back to her hands, only to jerk her head up as Ino and Hanabi piled out of the bathroom, both looking flawless. She felt her stomach sink at the sight of them. They were so beautiful that it hurt. Ino's hair was up in a bun with several loose strands to frame her face. Hanabi's hair was loosely curled and tied back low on the base of her neck. Both of them had perfect makeup and looked stunning.

"Okay Hinata time for you to see our work. Now get your pretty little butt over here," Ino demanded.

After a moment of intense deliberation, Hinata got to her feet. Her movements were slow and unpracticed in the set of heels she wore but she managed to make it over in front of mirror without stumbling. She tore her gaze away from her feet and looked up into the mirror.

She didn't recognize the person staring back at her. Firstly, the person staring back at her was beautiful. She looked just as stunning as Ino and Hanabi did. For a moment Hinata simply gaped at her reflection, trying to find traces of her old self in the image in the mirror. The girl there now had her hair straightened. It fell to the middle of her back with long layers. Her hair was flowing and soft, a polished shine to it thanks to the magic of Ino and Hanabi. She had bangs too that went across her forehead and framed her lavender eyes. The bangs were slightly jagged rather than simply straight across.

Her makeup was light, simply a glossy sheen to her lips and eyeliner to make her pretty eyes pop when looked at. A touch of mascara was the only other thing Ino had added, leaving her porcelain skin free of foundation of blush. Then there was the red dress that still looked just as amazing as it did before. However, in combination with the red heels, hair, and makeup, it made her look all the more stunning. She tentatively touched her face, half expecting the sight in front of her to fade away like some fleeting wish of what might have been. Yet the image remained and she found herself speechless.

"You look beautiful," Hanabi whispered in her ear as she gave her shoulders a small squeeze.

"I- I," she stammered out failing miserably with words. In the end she simply opted to turn around and hug both Ino and her sister.

"Thank you," she whispered.

* * *

It took him the entire car ride over to realize the anxious feeling he couldn't shake was because he was nervous. He tried to think of the last time he had been nervous for anything and couldn't come up with a single thing. He imagined this was how most high school males felt at one point or another, and he absolutely hated it. Part of him really was annoyed at how easily she caused him to be something he was not.

He wasn't one of those guys who got nervous about taking a girl out. He wasn't the guy who had the urge to be closer to a girl just for the sake of wanting to be around her. Yet more and more he found himself this way around her. It didn't make any sense why. Sure she wasn't some raving fan girl, and sure she was intelligent, kind, and passionate. Those couldn't be the only reasons he was drawn to her. It wasn't like she was some unearthly beauty. Yes he suspected that she was pretty behind that wall of hair, but it was just a feeling. For all he knew he was just creating an image for himself. Something he would like her to be rather than what she was.

Resisting the urge to pull back out of the driveway and go home, he got out of his car. Really he didn't want to go to this party. He cursed Naruto under his breath for having it, and then he cursed himself for what he had said to Kiba. What if he had to eat his words tonight? Now that the bet was once again nagging at his mind, he couldn't help but wonder just how good Ino's promise of magic was.

Feeling slightly irritated, more so at himself than anyone, he rang the doorbell. To his surprise it was Ino that answered it. She had a beaming smile on her face and as usual she looked like she was ready to go to some sort of red carpet event rather than a high school party. She ushered him inside and reluctantly he followed. Glancing around, he felt slightly out of place standing there in the Hyuga entryway, and shoved his hands into his pocket.

Her heard the sound of footfalls and jerked his vision up the stairs only to be greeted by the image of Hinata's younger sister. Idly he noted that Naruto was probably going to be wearing a stupid grin the entire night once he saw her. Hanabi came the rest of the way down the stairs before turning around.

"Hinata it's time to go. Sasuke is here," she yelled up the steps before turning around and shooting Sasuke a smile that made him all the more uncomfortable.

He waited for the sound of footfalls, unaware that he was holding his breath. None came though and it was completely silent. He glanced at Hanabi, who turned to look at Ino. Ino frowned and marched over to the foot of the stairs.

"Hinata Hyuga get your pretty little butt down here right this instant," she shouted up the stairs.

Sasuke turned back to the stairs when he heard a door close softly upstairs. He heard the distinctive click of heels against the wooden floors and found his eyes fixated on the top of the steps. The steps were painfully slow, almost deliberately so, and the seconds ticked by like minutes. Anticipation built up, but this time the unwanted feeling went ignored. That was only because she stepped into view.

* * *

**A/N**: So I have a couple of quick notes I want to make:

1) Yes I feel mean cutting the chapter off here but it was too perfect to pass up. So you got the makeover but not Sasuke's reaction. On that note next chapter will include Sasule's reaction, the return of Sakura, the introduction of her boyfriend, and the return of Karin. It will also include some fluff as there was not much for you in this chapter.

2) While something I don't necessarily picture for Hinata, the purpose of the red dress is a tribute to the movie. The little red dress she comes down the stairs in for the party. I altered the look from the dress in the movie but I thought the color should be the same.

3) For those of you interested in the ShikaIno side pairing there will be more of them in the next chapter or chapter after that.

4) I would love to see this story hit 300 reviews after this chapter so if you have the time review!

5) As always thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	13. Author's Note

**Author's Note**

Okay so I hate putting out an author's note when I should be updating but my computer deleted my chapter. I have never had this happen before! I am so annoyed. I found the document in my recycling bin and yet I cannot open it. It keeps coming up that there was an error and I am not talented enough to pull a computer houdini and make it magically appear. Not only was it this current chapter but the next one as well. So needless to say I am going to be forced to rewrite the chapter, and I am not sure how long that will take. I am going to try and get it redone as quickly as possible. The only reason I even bothered with the note is because I was so ecstatic about all the reviews that I thought you guys deserved a new chapter, and my computer went and deleted it. So this is basically to say that no I have not decided to ignore all your wonderful reviews telling me to update quickly, my computer just hates me. Again I apologize. I will have out the next chapter asap as long as I don't throw my computer out the window.


	14. The Party

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Naruto

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen**- The Party

For a brief moment Sasuke was thirteen again flipping through one of the many old 'Icha Icha' rags he and Naruto had discovered in Jiraiya's office. In a moment he was not overly proud of, a moment when he had actually acted like a typical adolescent male, he had let Naruto convince him to pick the lock of Jiraiya's office when his guardian had been away on business. Of course he had to pick the lock because the dobe was incapable of any real skills, but that was really besides the point. Once they had gotten inside they had found the office littered with magazines filled with barely clothed women, and like typical boys their age, they had spent the next several hours flipping through them.

Needless to say that was his first real exposure to the female body, and by real he meant way beyond that brief birds and bees crap they give you in elementary school. He remembered being quiet intrigued by the images, his eyes scanning and taking in every bare inch of skin. His eyes had traced and retraced every slender curve, and he committed them to memory. It was the beginning of understanding what he liked best about the opposite sex. In fact that whole rumor back then about his preferring long hair had actually been true. Of course he had never directly admitted it when asked about it, but it had been true. In fact he had been disappointed when Sakura had cut her hair shortly after the start of their freshman year. It was just hair though, and it didn't bother him. There were things far more important than the length of someone's hair.

Really though there were far more important things for him to be thinking about though, and he shook off any lingering thoughts of short pink hair. The point really was that back then, when he was studying those magazines, he had been incredibly interested by the female body. No interested wasn't the right word, captivated was more appropriate. He had been absolutely fascinated in a purely adolescent male way. Since then, while his interest in the female body had not wavered in the slightest, he had never been quite so fascinated by one.

Since the whole magazine incident, he had kept a close lid on his reactions to the opposite sex. He could find a girl attractive and she would never know it. He didn't feel the need to study her with the intensity he had of the pictures in the magazine. Now a casual glance sufficed. He was content with that, maybe a second if she happened to be really attractive, but that was it.

Of course that was until this moment now. Not since the day of his first discovery of the female body had he been so intent on one. Maybe it was because after one or two glances there was simply no way of labeling Hinata as anything given the clothes she usually wore, but seeing her now, he couldn't take his eyes off of her. At the moment a glance or two wouldn't suffice, he was flat out staring. In the back of his mind he was well aware this. In fact the back of his mind was yelling at him to salvage what little dignity he had left and look away, but he couldn't. What was worse was that it wasn't exactly her face that he was staring at.

His eyes had immediately gone to her body. He had seen her before at the dance studio in a leotard with a loose t-shirt draped over the top so he was aware of the fact that she did have some sort of a figure. However, that moment had been fleeting, and at the time he had been more focused on her dancing than anything else. This time though there was really no distraction. Because she was at the top of the stairs, his eyes naturally started with her legs. Slender and shapely, they seemed long despite the fact that Hinata was actually quite short. Perhaps it was the heels that made them look longer, but he found his eyes trailing upwards for what seemed like a considerable length of time before they hit red fabric.

He realized the bottom of the dress fell just several inches above her knee. He decided after what he had just seen it was a good length for her. He didn't dwell long on that though because his visual exploration continued upward. He took in the womanly yet slender curve of her hips, and the narrow waistline. His gaze moved upward again, this time taking note of the neckline of the red dress. While modest, it still showed the swell of her chest, and gave him just enough of an idea of what lay beneath. He came to another conclusion. Hinata had been hiding considerable assets all this time.

His eyes slipped down her body once again before he drug them up to her face. It wasn't that he wasn't curious, it was simply that hard to look away from the figure that the little red dress was so helpfully revealing. He began the process of studying her face then. It was after all the first time he had gotten a good look at it. For once there were no stands of hair obscuring her from view. The first thing he noticed was that her skin was pale, much like his own he supposed. However he decided he didn't like the word pale for her. Instead he decided porcelain was more appropriate. Delicate and flawless, her fair skin was a striking contrast to her indigo hair, which cascaded past her shoulder blades with a glossy shine.

His eyes shifted to her own. Now framed by a set of choppy bangs, he could clearly see their pale lavender color. Her eyes were large, innocent, he supposed. Framed by black liner, they seemed to pop, and demanded attention. When he looked away from them, his gaze slid over a delicate nose, almost button shaped, and to a set of full lips. The glossy sheen of makeup made the pale pink lips appealing and he found his gaze lingering a little longer than he meant for it to.

It wasn't until he heard a forced cough from somewhere to his side, that he regained control of his brain. Mentally berating himself for the drop in his usual façade, he finally took notice of the fact that Hinata had frozen at the top of the stairs. She had caught her lower lip between her teeth in a nervous matter, and it was all he could do not to start staring again. Instead he shoved a hand through his hair, in a lame attempt to seem indifferent. He was already well aware of the fact that he had already blown that. Hinata however seemed to take this as a sign of impatience and took to once again descending the stairs.

Sasuke made a mental note of how slowly she was moving, obviously not comfortable in the heels she was wearing. During her rather slow progress down the stairs, he found his thoughts drifting again. Again he found himself thinking of Sakura, only this time his mind was doing a comparison. It wasn't something he was proud of, but he at the moment he couldn't seem to help the direction of his thoughts. It surprisingly only took him until Hinata was about four steps from the bottom to decide that he preferred the girl standing in front of him. This was on a purely physical level though he suspected it was on more levels as well. He liked her petite, yet curvy figure and her soft, delicate features.

Sakura was beautiful. He wouldn't be one to argue that. She was exotic looking with her pink hair and emerald colored eyes. She had kind of figure that was plastered all over the magazines. She was tall and thin, her body slender and angular. She looked like a model. Hinata on the other hand had a more conventional type of beauty, one often overlooked. She wasn't the type of girl that immediately captured attention. She was the girl that someone needed to really stop and pay attention to in order to realize just how pretty she was. He was doing that right now.

He had a brief consideration of why she had been hiding behind her hair and clothes all this time, but it was cut short when Hinata stumbled. One minute she was carefully taking one step at a time and the next she was falling forward. Whether it was simply a mindless reaction or a need to catch her, Sasuke stepped forward. Before she could fall to the floor, he was there. Her body collided with his in an ungraceful manner, and his arms wrapped around her to prevent her from falling as he staggered backwards. He managed to regain his footing after several steps backwards and there he froze.

No longer concentrated on not falling, like a punch to the gut he became quite aware of the position he was in. Hinata was pressed against him, her chest against his own. One of her hands had fisted itself against his chest and the other rested flat against his stomach. His arms were wrapped tightly around her midsection, and one of her legs was tangled with his own.

She was frozen in his arms and he was frozen as well. His body had no interest in moving. It wasn't until he heard a giggle from his left that he took an abrupt step back. His hands lingered a moment longer to make sure she was steady before they dropped to his sides where they belonged. For a moment he couldn't bring himself to look up from where his eyes had focused on the floor. When he finally did, he noticed the fierce blush staining Hinata's cheeks a shade of red. In yet another momentarily lapse of control over his thoughts, he decided he liked the blush as it makes her seem less like a doll and more like a person.

"M-maybe we should go," Hinata suggested, sounding incredibly flustered.

He managed a short nod, glad that she had spoken up. He didn't trust himself to think, let alone speak at the moment. She had him all out of sorts and it was annoying him. He prided himself on control and this was just ridiculous. Still while he had the distinct urge to lash out something, her in particular, for making him act like this, he simply couldn't. He wasn't sure what was stopping him from simply walking out the door and waiting for her to follow him, but there was something, and he found himself waiting at the door while she said goodbye to her sister and Ino. When he finally did step outside, he was glad for the blast of cool air on his face. He certainly needed it.

* * *

There were more people crammed into the rather large house than she had imagined. Some were dancing, others were having loud discussions, their hands gripping proverbial red cups, and still others had turned to look at the newest arrivals, herself included. The feeling of discomfort only increased as she became aware of the fact for once people were looking at her rather than through her. The whispered comments made her ears burn despite the fact that she couldn't hear them. It was as if a spotlight had been positioned on her. The attention made her want to squirm.

Her discomfort must not have been lost on Sasuke because a moment later his hand was placed lightly on the small of her back, urging her forward to disappear into the crowd. The touch was unexpected and sent a jolt through her body, her step forward immediate and jerky. Still she was grateful the moment they stepped away from the attention and became just two more faces in the crowd. In fact her relief came out as an audible sigh.

"Is it really that horrible?"

She jumped at the sound of Sasuke's voice. He had leaned down, his mouth close to her ear in order to be heard over the sounds of people talking and music blaring. It took her a moment longer to process what he said than it normally would as his hot breath against her skin had turned out to be quite distracting. So when she did finally process it, she nodded her head. He shook his head ever so slightly though the corners of his mouth were upturned ever so slightly. He thought it was funny?

"I hate these things too."

She had half a mind to demand why he had brought her here then. Why were they somewhere that they both couldn't stand? Before she got a chance to ask him, his attention shifted away from her. She followed his gaze and spotted Naruto pushing his way towards them.

"Hey Sasuke. Where's Hina… holy crap! Hinata you look hot," Naruto blurted.

Unlike Sasuke she had no problem hearing Naruto over everything else. So when the words flew out of his mouth, she blushed a light shade of pink and buried her face into the closest thing available, which happened to be Sasuke's arm. Sasuke sent a glare in Naruto's direction and the blonde responded with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Heads up here comes Kiba," Naruto muttered a moment later, glancing somewhere over Sasuke's shoulder.

Beside her she felt Sasuke actually stiffen slightly and before she realized quite what was happening, he had carefully taken his arm away and wrapped it around her waist, pulling her to his side. The action left her with little place to hide her head unless she wanted to bury it against his chest. Not feeling nearly so brave when it came to Sasuke, she looked up in time to see Kiba come to a stop in front of them. He was grinning in an entirely feral manner that actually left her feeling nervous. In fact even Sasuke's hand tightened slightly where it rested on her hip. She suddenly felt a bit like being caught between a tornado and a hurricane. Either way the outcome wouldn't be good for her. Fortunately Hinata was saved by the arrival of another blonde, Ino.

"Well hello there boys. Great party Naruto, I figured you'd be interested to know that I brought a certain girl you wanted to see with me."

"Hanabi," Naruto asked, his gaze shooting in the direction of the door. He caught sight of the other Hyuga sister and grinned. "Catch you guys later."

With Naruto now making his way through the crowd, Ino turned her attention back to stare down between Sasuke and Kiba. Rolling her eyes, she took hold of Hinata's arm and pulled her away from Sasuke. "I hope you boys don't mind me borrowing Hinata here for a minute. Girl talk, you know how it is."

Hinata shot Ino a grateful look as she let her lead her away from Sasuke and Kiba. Once they were out of earshot and in another room, they came to a stop. "Thanks," Hinata breathed out.

"No problem. All that testosterone was practically suffocating. Looks like you are stirring up some problems between those two," Ino said with a grin.

Hinata's eyes widened. "B-but I don't want to c-cause any p-problems between them."

Ino laughed, a sound that was light and airy, and an action that made her look even more beautiful than she already did. A pang of insecurity shot through Hinata yet again. No Ino was wrong. She wasn't the kind of girl who men fought over. Ino was that type of girl.

"Beside w-why would they be a-arguing over me?"

"Whatever you say," Ino said with a dismissive wave of her hand.

Soon after people started to come over to talk to Ino. Hinata stood back marveling at how she seemed to know everybody. Even the people she didn't know seemed to know her. Slipping away from the small crowd now chatting with the blonde, Hinata decided to find the bathroom. She wanted a minute alone. Making her way down one of the halls, she kept saying excuse me as she pushed past various people, none of whom she knew.

Spotting the bathroom door, she made her way towards it being jostled slightly in the process. Knocking lightly on the door, she heard no reply so she pushed the door open. She was greeted by the sound of a moan and a girl hanging with her head in the toilet.

"Sorry," Hinata squeaked as she went to close the door.

"Hinata?"

Hinata stopped at the sound of her name, turning back around she saw the red hair and glasses. She associated them with the tormenting she received at the dance studio. She frowned slightly as she stepped back into the bathroom, closing the door behind her as she did so. "Karin?"

Karin groaned. "I think I'm going to throw up."

"I t-think you already did," Hinata informed her trying not to wrinkle her nose at the sight or the smell. At least Karin had managed to get most of it into the toilet.

"H-here," Hinata said walking over and grabbing a napkin from the counter. She handed it to Karin, who began to clean up her face. Hinata, feeling incredibly awkward made her way towards the door.

"How does it feel?"

"E-excuse me," Hinata asked stopping yet again and turning to face Karin, who had sat up straighter.

"You heard me. How does it feel? How does it feel to know that I'm going to one of the best dance schools in the fall, and that even though you are better than me, you won't be?" She laughed. "All because my father was willing to pay for it. Then again, my father doesn't hate me." Karin reached for her makeup case then, groaning and falling back onto the floor, passed out for the moment.

Hinata remained glued to the floor. Hot tears stung the back of her eyes but she refused to let them fall, not tonight. Tonight she was dressed like she belonged here, she had been invited! Tonight she wasn't the quiet girl the others ridiculed. She set her in a determined stare and locked the bathroom door. Walking over to Karin, she bent down and opened up her makeup case.

* * *

After Ino had drug Hinata away, he and Kiba parted ways. The two had never gotten along but this bet was brining a whole new element of hostility between them. Either way after Kiba had walked off, Sasuke had been left standing alone. Moving off through the crowd he went in search of Ino and Hinata, stopping along the way to grab himself a drink, anything to get him through this party. With a drink in hand, he resumed his search only to be distracted by the next pair of people to walk through the front doors.

Sakura had arrived with the guy she had dumped him for. Wearing far too much green for any day other than St. Patrick's day, the guy stuck out like a sore thumb with his bowl cut hair and rather busy eyebrows. It took him a minute to realize that all that green belonged to Rock Lee, protégé of fitness guru Maito Guy. Even still it was hard to believe this is what Sakura had left him for. Clad in a short green dress, she clung to his arm, a drink already in hand. The two parted ways shortly after the entrance, and Sakura catching his eyes, strode over towards him.

"Well hey there Sasuke," she said with a smile.

"Hi Sakura."

"I guess you've seen Lee then. I talked him in to coming with me. I thought I should make an appearance after all," she said tucking a strand of her pink hair behind an ear. "I'm surprised you're here. You always hated these sorts of things."

"I guess I let Naruto rope me into this one," he answered before inclining his head into the direction of Lee, who was now pushing people back to make a circle.

Sakura turned her head in the direction Sasuke had looked and then groaned. "Not again," she whined, before trotting off after Lee. Sasuke watched, an amused look on his face until Lee started dancing to 'Give it to Me Baby.' After about a minute and several awkward muscles poses in front of Sakura later he had to look away for fear of going blind. He was slightly surprised to see Ino standing there beside him always watching the display with a look of both disgust and amusement on her face.

"Where's Hinata," Sasuke asked causing her to look away and towards him.

"I don't know. She wandered off. I wanted to tell you though that if Sakura sees her here she is going to flip."

"I know. That's why I want to find her," Sasuke answered. Glancing back he saw Lee on the floor doing the worm. Shaking his head he moved through the crowd to try and find Hinata.

* * *

About a minute after Hinata walked out of the bathroom she heard laughter followed by a shrill scream. No doubt Karin and several other party goers had seen the clown makeup that Hinata had so painstakingly done over the last couple of minutes. Part of her felt horrible for doing it, but when she remembered what Karin had said to her, still another part of her felt entirely justified. It felt good to stand up for herself even if it was in a slightly childish way. With a little extra spring in her step she walked out of the hallway and back into the main room, her pale eyes looking around for someone she knew.

Unfortunately the only attention she attracted was that of Sakura, who had just armed herself with another drink after the end of Lee's performance. Hinata, who was busy looking around failed to noticed Sakura until she was standing right in front of her.

"What the hell are you doing here," Sakura snapped, causing Hinata to wince away.

"I was i-invited."

"Really? Oopsie," Sakura said as she tipped her glass forward and spilled the drink down the front of Hinata's dress, taking care to turn it completely over and get out the last drops.

Hinata took a step back, gasping slightly, her lavender eyes wide as the drink soaked through the dress and onto her skin. Unaware that the music had been cut and the exchange was now being watched by just about everyone, she looked back up at Sakura.

"You should be more careful," Sakura said with an entirely fake smile. Hinata could feel her face heating up, as Sakura stood there looking entirely satisfied.

"Thank you," Hinata said in a voice barely above a whisper.

"Excuse me?"

"Thank you," Hinata repeated. "For a m-minute I f-forgot why I avoided places l-like this and p-people like you."

Sakura laughed. "Avoided us? Honey look around you. To everyone here that matters you're vapor, you're spam, a waste of perfectly good yearbook space. Nothing is going to change that."

Hinata felt the hot tears stinging the back of her eyes yet again. She hadn't wanted this. Why couldn't everyone have just left her alone? It was like standing in front of her father, hearing him point out all her flaws, all of the reasons why he was so disappointed in her.

"Oh you're not going to cry are you," Sakura asked, making a face.

Hinata held her ground for a moment longer, but when she glanced up and saw everyone standing there and watching she couldn't hold it in any longer. With a barely muffled sob, she ducked her head and ran for the door.

* * *

Sasuke had been searching for Hinata when he saw Sakura turn away from Lee, who was still dancing, and make a beeline towards someone. It wasn't until one of the partygoers stepped aside that he realized her target was Hinata. He started towards her, but Sakura beat him there and tore into Hinata. Standing there he felt like a complete ass for bringing Hinata. She looked ready to cry. So when she ducked her head and ran, he ran after her, shoving several people aside to try and catch up from her.

Running out the front doors he was just in time to see Hinata stumble in her heels. She let out a small cry as she fell to the pavement, catching herself on her hands. He ran over, kneeling down on the ground beside her. He could hear her crying now and that sound made his stomach twist uncomfortably.

"Hinata," he said, carefully reaching out and touching her shoulder.

"Don't touch me," she said between the tears, turning her face away from him to keep it hidden behind a wall of hair.

"Hinata," he repeated rather lamely because he didn't know what to do. He wanted to stop her tears but he didn't know how. He wanted to ease the awful way he felt at seeing her cry but absolutely nothing came to mind.

"I p-promised that," she started only to fall into more silent tears.

"Promised what," Sasuke asked leaning closer to her in order to hear her.

"I promised that I was through letting people see my tears," she whispered as she reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear. She turned her head to the side to look at him, letting him see her tear-streaked face. Another pang shot through him at the sight of her. Again he wanted to make it all better, but he was the one who had caused all of this for her. He wasn't good at fixing things.

"It's okay," he tried.

She shook her head. "It's not okay. I never should have come here. I don't belong here Sasuke."

"Hinata," he said trying to think of the right words. For once in his life he needed to get them right. "Hinata we've been having fun together. You have been having a good time with me."

When she said nothing he took this as the fact that he was right. She had been having fun with him just as he had been having more fun with her than he could ever remember having with Sakura. "It's just sometimes, when you open up to new people you have to let the bad in with the good."

She blinked at him, her tear-streaked face for once unreadable. "I want to leave," she said rather firmly.

"Okay. Do you want me to take you home?"

"No. I just don't want to be here."

With that Sasuke stood and then carefully helped her up. He draped the jacket he had been wearing earlier over her shoulders and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. He felt her lean her head against him, and without another word he walked her to his car.

* * *

**Author's Note:** So feel free to throw all the rotten fruit you can get your hands on. I deserve that much for making you all wait for so long. I lost the desire to write this story after losing my work not once but twice. Sometime after my author's note and midway through rewriting my brand new computer died. The hard drive failed. It's a lame excuse but rewriting something once is hard enough, twice is a bitch. Even still it shouldn't have taken me this long so I am sorry for making you all wait. It was thanks to a few recent reviews asking me not to quit this story that got me motivated to write this. Still, I am not sure how I feel about this chapter but it serves its purpose and after all the rewriting I am fed up with trying to work on it.

And on another note I used some lines from the movie in this chapter. Sakura and Hinata's exchange is rather word for word, and what Sasuke says to Hinata is also a line though slightly altered. The story will once again turn away from the movie, but the party scene was rather important to the movie so I wanted to include it in this story as well. Hopefully I will have the next chapter out soon. If not feel free to give me a kick in the butt (read as a threatening message to tell me to get writing lol). Sometimes I need the motivation. And to sum up this chapter 1) Sakura is dating Lee 2) Lee dancing=scary (those of you who have seen the movie should know what I mean) 3) Hinata got a little payback on Karin and 4) Sakura is a bitch. Other than that hope you all enjoyed.


	15. The Swing

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or She's All That. _

**Author's Note**: Thank you to all who have reviewed and stayed interested in this story despite my absence. A special thanks to Deithefrenchfri who sent me a wonderful personal message about my stories. Your message got me back in gear to restart this chapter. This chapter is un'betaed and lacks proofreading in favor of getting it up. Sorry for any mistakes.

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen**- The Swing

After the scene between Hinata and Sakura, Ino wasn't in much of a partying mood. So she found Naruto, who was following Hanabi around like some sort of lost puppy, thanked him for the party, and made up an excuse about having to get home before her parents did. She thanked him for a killer party and was out the door after being there for not even a full hour.

Ignoring the cool air, she made her way over to her car and slid inside. Glancing up she caught her reflection in the rearview mirror, glossy lips, flawless makeup, and an enviable shine to her hair. She was the kind of girl that others wanted to be, but at the moment she didn't even like herself. There were times, like tonight, when the feeling crept up on her. There was regret over the choices she made and the shame of who she had become. It tended to hit her particularly when she looked at the people who she called her friends. They say to really get to know someone, look at their friends. In this case Ino was rather certain no one would like what they were seeing.

Flipping open her phone, she sent Hinata a quick text message asking her if she was alright. Immediately after she punched the send button her phone beeped at her indicating a low battery. She frowned, watching the little closing envelop that indicated the message was being sent. When a check mark popped up and the window closed she flipped her phone shut and sighed out loud as it shut itself down. That's what she got for being on it all the time. The battery never quite lasted all day. She needed to talk her dad into letting her get a new one.

She started the car and pulled away from the curb where she had parked. In autopilot, she made her way back to her house, not even bothering to turn on the radio. Pulling into her driveway, she glanced at her house. The living room light was on, but she knew no one was home. Her mother and father had gone out with some friends, and knowing them, they wouldn't be back until much later. She almost wished they were home, not quite feeling like being alone.

Turning off the car, she dropped her keys into her clutch and snapped it shut. She opened up her door and hit the lock button as she climbed out of the car. Shutting the door behind her, she made her way to the front door. Opening her clutch, she reached inside for her keys only to come up empty. Her blue eyes widened slightly as she proceeded to dump her clutch out on the step in front of the door. No keys. Frantically she shoved everything back inside of her bag and walked back to the car, her heels clicking on the asphalt. Pressing her forehead against the window she peered into her car only to see her keys lying on her seat. She must have missed her bag when she gone to drop them in.

She pulled her head away from the glass. She would just have to use the spare key to get inside. She took one step back towards the house when she remembered that she had used the spare key early that week and hadn't bothered to put it back. She cursed under her breath. How the hell was she supposed to get inside her house then? Her parents were out, and thanks to her phone being dead she couldn't call them. Plus because she had locked her keys in the car she couldn't go anywhere unless she walked. Most of her friends lived further away and even if she did decide to walk they were most likely at Naruto's.

Digging her phone out of her bag, she tried turning it on. The phone started up but as soon as it went to her background it beeped again and turned itself off.

"Stupid phone," she shouted as she not-so-gently threw it back into her clutch. Next she tried the car door as if it would somehow open through her sheer will. "Stupid car," she yelled once again, lamely kicking the tire when the door wouldn't open.

"You going to blame every inanimate object around you," drawled a lazy sounding voice, one she would recognize anywhere.

She glanced around, not seeing the source of the voice even though she knew he had to be somewhere.

"Up here," he said, his tone still bored.

She looked up and sure enough this time she spotted him. Shikamaru was up on the roof of his garage, back propped against the siding. She had known him well enough to know two things. The first was that his room was over the garage. All he needed to do was climb out his window to get onto the roof. The second was that he liked watching the sky. He preferred the clouds, but given that the day had been cloudless and clear, he was probably making up for it now by watching the stars.

There had been a time not too many years ago when it wouldn't have been uncommon to find her up there as well. Particularly on nights when something was bothering her or if she just wanted some company, she would climb up the tree that was growing beside the garage and join him on the roof. She found herself walking towards that tree now. She stopped when she reached it, leaning her back against the rough bark.

"I locked myself out of my house," she stated. She glanced up towards the roof and a moment later, she saw Shikamaru's face peering over the top.

"I figured that one out on my own."

She noticed he made no other attempt to say anything, and after about a minute of silence between them, she made the completely irrational decision of reaching down and slipping off her heels. The action broke Shikamaru's silence.

"What are you doing," he asked, looking at her with one eyebrow raised slightly.

"I'm going to climb the tree. I thought you a genius," she retorted as she placed her hands on the lowest branch.

"You haven't climbed that thing in years. You are going to hurt yourself."

"So what I am taller now, it should be easier," she retorted.

"You are wearing a dress, a very- short dress," he said after a moment.

"Yeah well don't pretend like you won't enjoy the view," she retorted as she brushed some blonde bangs away from her eyes and pulled herself up onto the branch.

"Troublesome."

She heard him mutter the word as she carefully navigated her way higher into the tree. She had been right about it being easier now that she was taller. However, he had been right in reminding her she hadn't climbed it in years. It was unfamiliar, and despite her reach, it took her longer than it had used to.

When she had nearly reached the roof, Shikamaru leaned over the side and offered her his hand to help with the last step. She hesitated for a brief moment before placing her hand in his and allowing him to pull her upwards onto the roof.

He did it with relative ease, and Ino found herself wondering how it was possible for someone so lazy to stay in shape. Then again as sad as it was to admit, she supposed she didn't actually know Shikamaru as well as she used to. People changed and there was no doubt there were a lot of thing she didn't know about him anymore.

She settled down on the roof, her back against the outside wall of his room, and wrapped her arms around herself to keep away the chill of the night air. To her surprise Shikamaru didn't immediately settle back down. Instead he moved back towards his window and slipped inside. For a moment the thought crossed her mind that he was going to just leave her out here by herself. He wouldn't do that, would he?

Her question was answered as he came back out through the window, a bundle in his hands. She eyed it for a moment before realizing that he was holding a dark gray hoodie.

"Here," he said as he thrust it towards her. "You can use this."

"Thanks," she muttered, her cheeks growing warm as she took the hoodie from his hands. Using the excuse of pulling on the sweatshirt, she looked away. She pulled the hoodie over her head, noting how large it was on her, as she brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Beside her, Shikamaru had settled back onto his back to look up at the stars.

"So my mom told me that you got accepted into Kage University," Ino said, breaking the silence between them. Her mother had told her after Shikamaru's own mom had come over to gush about her boy being accepted into one of the top schools in the whole country. It wasn't much of a surprise. She knew that Shikamaru was incredibly smart. Beside her Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders as if the accomplishment wasn't that important.

"That's kind of a big deal you know," she pointed out when he offered nothing other than the shrug.

"I guess so, but I'm not going there," he said after a moment.

"What? Why not," she asked wide-eyed at the thought of turning down entrance to a school like Kage University.

"Too much work."

"You are a horrible liar," she countered, still looking up at him. He may be lazy but he had already done the work to get in. The excuse was a load of crap.

"I just don't have any interest in going there," he supplied after a moment. "Everyone I know is attending Kohona University in the fall. Plus I went and toured the campus two weeks ago with my parents. The students there were," he trailed off as if trying to think of the right words in his head. "Lets just say they weren't the kind of people I see myself wanting to be around, mostly self-centered, entitled, rich kids whose parents pay that hefty tuition bill. I mean I am sure they aren't all like that, but I'd rather not surround myself with those kind of people."

"Kind of like I did," Ino whispered quietly, his words hitting closer to home than she imagined they would. Because aside from the occasional one or two, most of Ino's closest friends fell into that category. At times she wondered if she herself fell there too.

"Yeah kind of like you did," Shikamaru agreed before tactfully switching the subject. "What about you? You still want to attend Kohona University for the fashion program?"

Ino laughed and shook her head, strands of platinum blonde hair dancing around her face as she did so. "I changed my mind two years ago. I am going to get my degree in psychology. I actually want to try and be a profiler," she admitted quietly. It was something she hadn't told anyone aside from her parents. No one else would take the blonde seriously when she mentioned wanting to be a criminal profiler.

"That is pretty ambitious," he said, and she felt herself bristle, ready to defend her decision. "You'd probably be pretty good at it though. You've always liked reading people."

Ino found herself smiling then, glad to know that he didn't think her ambition was silly. It meant a lot to her, though she didn't voice that. Instead she swallowed a sudden lump in her throat and nodded her head before turning her gaze back to the night sky.

They stayed comfortably like that for a while longer. Both of them were content to simply watch the sky. For Ino it was a nice change of pace. Normally on a night like tonight she would be chatting it up with her friends on Facebook or watching something on television. She hadn't done something like this in years. Actually it had probably been back when she had still been good friends with Shikamaru and Choji.

"Shikamaru," she said breaking the silence once again. From beside her he let out a 'hm' to acknowledge her.

"What happened to us? I mean stuff like this. Why did it all have to end," she whispered softly.

"You really don't know the answer to that," he asked, and when she didn't reply he let out an annoyed sigh. "You wanted to be popular Ino. That wasn't something that was going to happen with Choji and I around. We could take a hint."

"It wasn't that simple," she argued.

"Yes it was. We didn't fit into your image. You made that pretty clear."

She visibly winced as she remembered that day, the beginning of ninth grade when she had tried to explain to Choji and Shikamaru that she still wanted to be friends, but she wanted to sit with other friends in school. It had been a stupid, selfish thing to do. Yet there was a lot more to it than Shikamaru was bothering to point out, and her temper flared just slightly.

"So the whole thing was my fault, is that it? I guess you are forgetting how I tried to apologize later. I wanted to fix things," she said, her voice gradually increasing in its volume. "You wouldn't let me!"

"Because I was angry. You chose popularity over years of friendship. We'd known each other since we were in diapers and as soon as high school hit, you suddenly wanted nothing to do with us."

"I know I had messed up. That is why I wanted to say I was sorry," she said her voice no longer loud but instead reserved.

"I wasn't ready to forgive you," he said quietly.

"I'm sorry," she whispered after a moment. "I wish things had been different."

"Me too."

* * *

She wasn't sure where they were going or how long Sasuke had been driving. In fact she was only dimly aware of that she was in the car with him. The whole time she had been staring down at her hands, which were wrung together and sitting on her lap. A few more tears had slipped from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks before falling onto the fabric of her dress that lay across her legs. Sasuke hadn't said a word to her and for that she was glad because at the moment she did not feel like talking. She was sure her voice would crack and sound raw from the crying she had done. Plus she preferred to be alone with her thoughts.

The tears themselves were bad enough. She had promised herself long ago that she was done crying. It had been ever since her father had called her weak when she had cried in front of him over something that had happened between her and Neji back when they had still been in elementary school. She couldn't even remember what had happened but she remembered the unchecked impatience in his tone as he had told her she better toughen up. Ever since that day the only time she would cry was when she was alone. It was more often than she cared to admit but there was never anyone around to see her weakness.

She had been a fool to agree to go to the party with Sasuke. She wasn't sure why she had done it. Perhaps it had been some false hope that things weren't quite how she imagined them to be, that there wasn't such an immeasurable gap between who she was and who the people Sasuke hung out with were. She wanted to believe that maybe she had been wrong about not fitting in with them, or with him for that matter, but as it turned out she had been right from the start. Sakura's words still stung, and like a slap across the face, they were a bitter reminder that didn't fit into Sasuke's world. She was a nobody and it was probably best that she stay that way.

It wasn't until she heard the driver's side door open and shut that she realized they had stopped. Jerking her head up, she caught sight of her reflection in the window. Her eyes were red-rimmed and tear streaks ran down her cheeks. Her makeup was smeared as well and even some of the shine seemed to have vanished from her hair. All in all she looked a mess and made a futile attempt at rubbing away some of the smeared eyeliner when her door swung open. Her reflection vanished as the window was swung away from her. In its place now stood Sasuke.

For a brief moment she stared up at him almost as if she had forgotten how to function normally. Before she had a chance to regain her wits, Sasuke offered her his hand, and she took it only to be helped from the seat and out of the car. As Sasuke shut the car door, Hinata took a moment to look around. Only then did she realize where they were. Sasuke had parked by at the Kohona Park. Vaguely she remembered him telling her in English class that he liked to walk. She supposed that was why he had come here, despite the late hour.

Sasuke dropped her hand as she looked around, but moved his own hand around to the small of her back. Resting his hand there, he guided her forward towards the path that ran through the park. It wasn't an overly large park, and the lights from the softball fields and parking lot managed to at least dimly light up most of the park.

Glancing around as she fell into step beside Sasuke, she noticed that the park was empty, or at least the parts she could see. She could hear other people shouting not too far off meaning that there was still at least one basketball game going on, but from where they were, she couldn't see it.

Neither she nor Sasuke said anything and the only sound except the voices in the distance was the sound of her heels as they clicked against the paved path. Wrapping her arms around her stomach and snuggling into the warmth of Sasuke's jacket. It smelled like him, just like the sweatshirt he had lent her before had. It was oddly soothing as was his silent presence beside her.

They walked for awhile before Hinata caught sight of the playground. Almost unconsciously she started to walk towards it. Sasuke followed, his hand had fallen away from her back and had been shoved into his pocket some time ago. Before she went to step off the path, she kneeled down and unstrapped her heels. Stepping out of them, she straightened back up with them in hand when she heard a low chuckle from beside her.

"What," she asked quietly as she turned to look at him.

"I forgot how short you were without those things."

She made an attempt to glare at him but between the smudged makeup and the fact that it was her, it was a poor attempt. He ended up chuckling again, and she sighed slightly in defeat. Turning away from him, she moved towards the swings. The woodchips poked uncomfortably into the bottom of her feet as she walked onto the playground itself but she ignored them.

Coming to the first set of swings, she sat down on one and let her feet dangle, kicking them back and forth slightly. Her face felt cool from the evening air and she hoped that it meant the red blotchiness created by her crying had faded. She pushed herself backwards, allowing herself to swing slightly. The chains squeaked softly as she did this, her hands gripping them as her hair blew around as she swung.

She looked over at Sasuke who was now leaning against one of the posts of the swing set. He had his arms folded across his chest, and he was watching her with a hint of amusement on his features. She could tell by the way the corner of his mouth quirked up ever so slightly. It was almost unnoticeable, but he was a bit easier to read than one might expect.

Her eyes flickered back up to his. His gaze was always so intense, and the black color of his eyes made it all the more unnerving. It was no wonder that so many people would squirm when he turned the full power of his gaze on them, especially if he wasn't happy with them. When she realized that she was staring, she flushed red. He noticed, and his lips quirked upward even more as a smirk settled on his devastatingly good-looking features. She dropped her gaze down to her feet and trailed her toes in the dirt under the swing as she slowed her momentum.

"T-thank you for bringing me here. I-I needed this," she said softly as she brought herself to a stop. She really did appreciate him brining her here. She wouldn't have wanted to go home like this. Coming here gave her a chance to regain her composure away from any prying eyes. She supposed that she and Sasuke had that much in comment. They both valued their solitude more than the average person. She heard him make a 'hn' sound, but other than that offered no more comment.

Unsure of how to take his comment without seeing his expression she glanced up. When she looked up, a small gasp escaped her lips. She hadn't realized how close he had gotten. He had left his spot by the pole and was now right in front of her, his black eyes peering into hers, which seemed to glimmer slightly in the dim light of evening. He leaned forward, placing his hands on the chains of the swing directly above her own. Her mouth hung open just ever so slightly at the surprise of his sudden closeness. She hadn't even heard him move. Yet, she couldn't tear her eyes away from his though and for a moment they simply stared at one another, neither moving.

Then Sasuke moved closer, his denim clad legs bumping against her knees. His face moved closer but all she could do was look at his eyes as if she were frozen under their gaze. His face hovered in front of her own, until his forehead came to a rest against hers. Realization of what was happening registered somewhere in the back of her mind, and as a result her pale eyes fluttered shut as her heart beat wildly in her chest. Sasuke's nose brushed lightly against her own, the action sending shivers down her spine. She could now feel his warm breath against her lips. All she had to do was lean forward just a fraction of an inch.

The sound of Sasuke's phone ringing shattered the silence as well as the trace she was in. Her eyes shot open as they both simultaneously jerked away from one another. Had Hinata not been holding onto the chains she would have fallen right off of the swing. She released a breath she had not realized she had been holding as her face flushed a bright shade of red. As for Sasuke he was looking at the ground as he agitatedly pulled his phone out of his pocket. She swore she heard him mutter something about killing Naruto as he flipped the phone open.

"What," he snapped.

His expression shifted to one of mild confusion before he pulled the phone away from his ear and extended it towards her.

"It's for you," he muttered before shoving his hands into his pockets after she had taken the phone.

Her own expression shifted from embarrassment to confusion as she hesitantly took the phone from him. The screen read Naruto, and she wondered how it could possibly be for her.

"H-hello?"

"Hinata! It's Hanabi. I have been trying to get a hold of you for forever now. I must have called your phone like ten times!"

"Hanabi? Oh I am sorry. I-I must have left it in Sasuke's car," Hinata answered as she realized it was her sister.

"Are you alright? I heard what happened. I missed the whole thing. If I had been there, I would have.."

"I'm fine Hanabi," Hinata said cutting her younger sister off.

"Seriously I don't know how you didn't slap her. She would have deserved it. I bet everyone would have cheered you on too," Hanabi rambled from the other end of the phone.

"I'd actually rather forget it happened," Hinata admitted softly.

"Okay I really just wanted to make sure you were okay. I was really worried."

"I promise I am alright. I will see you at home, okay?"

"Okay bye Hinata."

"Bye," Hinata said as hung up the phone and sheepishly passed it back to Sasuke, who had retreated several steps.

"Sorry about that," she said softly as she stood up from the swing and scooped her heels off of the ground. Sasuke shrugged as he shoved the phone back in his pockets.

"We should probably head back. They are going to shut off the lights here soon," he said gruffly as rubbed the back of his neck, no longer making eye contact with her.

"O-okay," she stammered thinking that if this was anyone except Sasuke she would have thought they were nervous. She didn't dwell on it though, instead she scurried forward, heels in hand as she tried to keep herself from blushing as she thought back to what the phone call had interrupted.

* * *

He couldn't figure out if he was more annoyed with the interruption that had just occurred or the fact that he had been about to kiss Hinata. Both left him frustrated. He really had wanted to kiss her. Even with her makeup a mess, her sitting there on that swing with a soft smile on her lips had really got to him. She had looked just as breathtaking as she had when she had first walked down the steps earlier that night. At the same time though the interruption had given him a moment to think, and he had gone and reminded himself of why he was supposed to be doing this in the first place.

He was annoyed at himself for making the bet in the first place. It was his fault she had been crying tonight; his fault he was dragging her into unforgiving population of high school's elite. She didn't deserve any of that just so he could win some stupid bet. He knew he was too proud though to go and call the whole thing off. No way would he let Kiba win something like this. But at this point he couldn't help but wonder what was the cost going to be. He shifted his gaze to the girl walking quickly beside him, and admitted to himself that it was going to be a lot more than ever would have expected.

* * *

**AN**: So I am a horrible updater. The list of excuses goes on but the fact is I just don't have time to update nearly as often as I would like to. In addition numerous lost drafts of this chapter and the last one have equated to no muse. That aside I do have every intention of finishing this story so it will get done. So for those of you who are sticking around for it, I thank you.

As for this chapter I hope there was some fluff that everyone enjoyed. A little ShikaIno and SasuHina going on in this chapter. I realize this chapter had more ShikaIno than SasuHina, but this will not be something that happens regularly. I just wanted to address what has been going on between those two. I am planning for one or two more chapters before everything falls apart. Then a couple more chapters and that will be about it. I plan on around 20 chapters for this story.

Another quick note I would like to make is that there have been some comments regarding the ShikaIno pairing. I understand not everyone likes this pairing but I am not about to change the story to ShikaTema either. It's not the way I plotted the story out in my head so I am sorry but stop asking for a change in the pairing. And now if you got this far into the note thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


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